Beautiful End said:
Yes, Gamestop gets a profit for selling used games. What did you expect? Someone has to benefit from it. This isn't about 'sticking it to the man' anyway. Besides, half of the used copies they sell end up on the Defective pile because of players who can't get to play said used game for whatever reason, whether it is because they don't know how to control the characters, play the game overall, because it freezes or whatever. So Gamestop doesn't benefit as much as you think they do. Believe me, I know.
Gamestop doesn't just make a profit from used games, they make HALF OF ALL THEIR PROFITS from used games:
http://www.gamefront.com/half-of-gamestop-profits-come-from-pre-owned-sales/
So yes, I think they benefit as much as anyone thinks they do. It's more likely that most people have NO IDEA how much they benefit. They wouldn't be in business without the used business, put it that way.
Yes, gamestop offers a service, and they should benefit from it, but this is far from benefit, its a monopoly that basically rapes gamers because they have no other choice. Even a brand new game sold back to Gamestop on release day has them getting paid $30 or less, and Gamestop selling it for $55. They are paying you 30 dollars less than retail, and selling it for 5 dollars less. Does that sound right? No, it just sounds like your only choice. They make as much as you do on the transaction, and it's YOUR GAME. It's bs and not worth defending.
Luckily online trading sites are starting to pop up to combat this, I'm using http://gamestaq.com right now, and getting twice what GameStop would pay me in store credit. I won't even think about how much cash they would offer (25% less, always). I'm also selling directly to other gamers, with the website taking a small fee, something like 5% as opposed to basically a +90%-150% fee at GameStop. Plus I don't have to leave the house even, let alone enter their stores and be bombarded with up-sells and subscriptions etc.
It sounds to me like you work there, everyones gotta make a living, but as a gamer you should not be supporting this mistreatment of your fellow gamers. I'm not saying you should quit, but don't go defending their horrendous practices aimed at lining their pockets.