People comparing this to the way PC and mobile already is with digital downloads must remember:
* PC ecosystem offers truly flexible pricing and many non-DRM alternatives like GOG.com
* Insane Steam sales rather than the trickle of limp "sales" you typically see on Xbox Live. (Though PSN, to be fair, has some good sales regularly and good PS+ sales.)
* Platforms with far better continuity and backwards compatibility - you know that your digital purchases will almost always be usable moving forward into the future. Whether you build a new PC, or upgrade to a newer smart phone or tablet model.
* Superior PC services and extra values such as mod support, steam workshop, etc.
... and, to be blunt about it, if digital services on PC that have DRM ever go toes-up and screw you over, odds are that those dirty pirates have your back with unlocked versions of the software you purchased floating around the internet.
Game consoles have always been predicated on a different value proposition. It used to be that the hardware itself was the "DRM". You couldn't take a purchased game off the specific version of that hardware platform, or build your own custom console to spec. But this was offset by the ability to trade, sell, or even give away copies of games to others. (And acquire traded, used, or gifted games yourself in turn.)
Consoles were also offset by their simplicity, ease of use, and a good proposition of fixed hardware + low entry price providing a stable experience over a set number of years for not really much money.
The problem with trying to turn consoles into PCs in the area of DRM and digital ecosystem is that it's difficult to provide all the benefits to offset the restrictions. This even before getting into the fact that the leading console game industry and publishers are desperately trying to continue justifying their bloated practices. Which means passing more and more of the cost along to the end customer, rather than using stuff like DRM to lower prices on new products.
Developers are always going to risk going out of business, it wont matter if the 2nd hand market is stopped.
At the end of the day, if a game is obviously shit, it wont sell regardless if its 1st or 2nd hand.
The easiest way to avoid going out of business, make better bloody games
I look at fallen flags like Bizarre Creations.
I look at companies like EA, still in business publishing stuff like Dead Space 3, and whatever shit Bioware pushed out next.
And see it is not that simple.
