Author: Joe Fonicello

Digital marketer and value investor -- Known as @Toast on Twitter

Ryan Cohen Mocks Elon; Can’t Decide Whether to HOLD or HODL GME Shares

Posted on by Joe Fonicello

Two days after Elon Musk controversially declares he will decide whether to sell 10% of his Tesla stock based on a Twitter poll, Ryan Cohen has shared some banter.

Ryan Cohen and Elon Musk’s Twitter antics have long been compared, with Cohen’s comical tweets reminding investors of the Technoking of Tesla.

In fact, Ryan Cohen used to place Elon Musk as one of his select follows.

Much has changed since then, including the Tesla CEO shutting down the company’s ability to accept cryptocurrency as payment for their cars, which coincided with Cohen’s unfollowing.

Interestingly enough, it wasn’t until several months later that we learned about GameStop’s plans to launch an NFT marketplace, utilizing blockchain.

What’s the joke?

On Saturday, November 6th, Musk tweeted a Twitter poll declaring that he will decide whether or not to sell 10% of his Tesla stock based on the results.

I propose selling 10% of my Tesla stock.

Elon asked his followers if they supported him selling 10% of his stock.

Elon followed up this tweet with some clarification,

I will abide by the results of this poll, whichever way it goes

While many expected Tesla’s stock price to plummet on the news, the stock only fell 4.8% on Monday.

Instead of sharing a poll on his own, Ryan Cohen has decided to poke fun, stating that he is deciding between the two options for his GME shares, HOLD or HODL.

Ryan Cohen tweeted on November 8th at 9:45 PM.

Without even offering selling as an option, the Chairman has expressed no interest in parting with his GME shares, which he acquired as early as April 2019. In late 2020, Ryan added to his position twice more until reaching a 9.98% stake, disclosed September 21.

One month later, in November, Cohen increased his stake to 12.9% and filed an amendment to his 13D with his iconic letter to the GameStop board urging the company to share a credible plan for seizing opportunities in the rapidly growing gaming sector.

GMEdd.com has gone ahead and shared our own poll, asking investors whether Ryan Cohen should HOLD or HODL, visit our twitter profile to leave your own vote.

Sources: Ryan Cohen on Twitter, Elon Musk on Twitter

Amazon: ‘Don’t tell me we lost another!’ as GameStop Poaches over 250 Hires from Tech Giants

Posted on by Joe Fonicello

GameStop has ‘yoinked’ over 250 tech-experienced hires from the likes of Chewy, Amazon, and Microsoft since Ryan Cohen’s digital-first takeover. 

In May, GMEdd.com published GameStop Poaches Talent From The Best – Amazon, Chewy, Facebook, Google, and More, revealing that public profiles on LinkedIn indicated over 30 new hires at the gaming retailer who brought experience from a cross section of high growth e-commerce stars.

Now, GameStop has more than octupled that number, recruiting over 250 quintessential go-getters to aid in the transformation.

Per an agreement with GameStop Corp. in January, Ryan Cohen’s RC Ventures was granted 3 seats on the company’s board as the Chewy co-founder had been urging the brick-and-mortar to adapt to changing times.

Ever since, the public corporation has operated largely in silence while building the foundation for a digital-first technology company that can compete with the likes of Amazon.

Ryan Cohen’s secret to accomplishing this? Finding talent. And lots of it.

GMEdd.com has been tracking GameStop’s tech hires since the appointment of Matt Francis to CTO in February.

Can’t stop, won’t stop, GameStop.

When Ryan Cohen was asked how he finds his management teams during a 2018 Miami Herald interview, he gave his endorsement for the professional networking platform LinkedIn.

We use a special proprietary tool called LinkedIn and we look for people with very relevant experience at companies we respect and we shoot them a message. … We handpicked these people. They are the best of the best, the Navy Seals of management teams.

By scouring LinkedIn, we can discover some motivations as to what would compel someone to make such an unconventional career move from a blue-chip to GameStop.

Brian OKeefe’s post on LinkedIn in October of 2021.

Take Brian OKeefe, an Amazon veteran who had operated as a Global Finance Lead for the e-commerce giant for over four and a half years. 

On LinkedIn in September, OKeefe stated that he has left Amazon to “pursue a new challenge,” and that he is “energized by the team, the mission, and the story here,” at GameStop.

OKeefe isn’t the only GameStop recruit that has shared this same bullish sentiment on social media. In fact, GameStop’s mission and startup-atmosphere seems to be part of the pitch.

Jeremy Martin joined GameStop in July 2021.

Jeremy Martin worked at Amazon for over 8 years prior to starting his next adventure in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, at GameStop HQ. 

Martin wasn’t a small fish, either. Having served as Amazon UK’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO), he designed, staffed, and led high performance finance, sales, and UK operations for the multi-billion dollar e-commerce company.

GameStop Headquarters’ floor plans are available online, dated July 29th, 2021.¹

GameStop’s Grapevine Headquarters’ floor plans reveal Jeremy Martin’s importance to the scrappy startup, with an office positioned right by the CEO and Executive Suite.

The gaming retailer’s newly-appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Matt Furlong, previously worked as Amazon’s Country Leader for Australia, indicating GameStop’s interest in these high-ranking players.

Vinay Patel has not yet announced his new employment, but we can safely guess.²

Amazon employees have begun to notice how GameStop has been poaching all of the company’s talent, with Vinay Patel, a 5 year Amazon vet, stating that he “had an opportunity that was very hard to walk away from.”

Please don’t tell me we lost another teammate to GameStop!

What’s the plan?

Although it seems that GameStop’s recruits are being asked to keep their tasks on the down-low, some can’t help but share their enthusiasm, and it’s in-part to help recruit for their own teams.

Stacey Ferreira is ‘building the experience of the future’ at GameStop.

Meet Stacey Ferreira, who has taken the role of Director of New Formats at GameStop. In fact, you may recognize her name, since she’s founded and sold two technology companies, been recognized on Forbes 30 Under 30, co-authored the best-selling book 2 Billion Under 20, and spoken at a number of prestigious events including TEDx, Singularity University, Inc. Women’s Summit, among others.

Now, she’s focused on building GameStop’s “store of the future,” and working to bridge digital/physical into a seamless customer experience.

Revitalizing retail should not come as a surprise, considering in July individuals with first-hand knowledge on Ryan Cohen’s strategy stated that the Chairman was ‘infuriated with dusty shelves’ and had plans to revive retail stores.

That’s not all

While the public has not yet been informed what GameStop’s tech-centric roadmap entails, through chatter amongst hires on LinkedIn we can now speculate that the future includes forward-thinking improvements across the board alongside new offerings.

GameStop employees have hinted towards building new mobile apps, an NFT marketplace, a new customer service team, the evolution of the PowerUp Rewards program, new private label products, new supply chain systems, new fulfilment centers, a new website UX, expansion into PC gaming and eSports, revamping GameInformer, a new affiliate and partnership program, and improving the associate training program LevelUp.

GameStop’s senior management is hiring for just about everything.

LinkedIn remains a critical behind-the-scenes resource for GameStop investors, and posts by employees indicate widespread talent acquisition in all departments. 

With GameStop’s new management on a hiring frenzy, tech and e-commerce executives looking to be a part of something are leaving FAANG in droves to fulfill Cohen’s vision. 

Toast and vestro researched. Toast edited and contributed. 

Sources: Miami Herald, Charles Pich on LinkedIn, Brian OKeefe on LinkedIn, GameStop Space Information, Eva Lau on LinkedIn, Greg Palmer on LinkedIn, Daniel West on LinkedIn, Erik Shewalter, Stacey Ferreira on LinkedIn, Stephen Daws on LinkedIn, Brandon Southern on LinkedIn, Ken Suzuki on LinkedIn, Vinay Patel on LinkedIn

Join GMEdd.com’s Official Discord Server to chat about this article, GameStop’s transformation, and more.

Consider donating to support research and buy our contributors a coffee

¹After GMEdd.com published this piece, GameStop’s floor plans were taken down, leading our sources to now point to an archived version.

² Vinay Patel has updated his LinkedIn to reflect employment at GameStop.

GameStop Secures New Liquidity, $500M Asset-Based Credit Facility

Posted on by Joe Fonicello

GameStop has announced a new $500 Million asset-based revolving credit facility with improved terms and liquidity.

GameStop Corp. today announced that it has entered into a new $500 million global asset-based revolving credit facility (“ABL Facility”) with a syndicate of banks. The new five-year ABL Facility, which was oversubscribed, replaces the Company’s existing $420 million facility due in November 2022. 

In addition to delivering enhanced liquidity, the new ABL Facility provides for reduced borrowing costs, lighter covenants and more flexibility. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. acted as Lead Arranger and will serve as Administrative Agent.

Form 8-k

GameStop Corp.’s latest SEC Form 8-K reveals more information about the asset-based revolving credit facility.

The Credit Agreement provides for an asset-based secured revolving credit facility with a borrowing capacity of $500 million and a maturity date of November 3, 2026, and includes a $50 million swing loan revolving sub-facility, a $50 million Canadian revolving sub-facility, and a $250 million letter of credit sublimit. The Credit Agreement also includes the ability to add a $25 million Australian revolving sub-facility, subject to the completion of certain conditions.

The Credit Agreement replaces the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, dated as of March 25, 2014, by and among GameStop, Bank of America, N.A. and the other lending institutions (listed in the full 8-K). The prior facility was due to expire on November 20, 2022.

Borrowings under the Credit Agreement accrue interest at the election of GameStop at an adjusted LIBOR rate plus an applicable margin (ranging from 1.25% to 1.50%) or an adjusted prime rate plus an applicable margin (ranging from 0.25% to 0.50%). The applicable margin is determined quarterly as a function of GameStop’s average historical excess availability under the facility and is set at 0.50% for prime rate loans and 1.50% for LIBOR rate loans until GameStop’s first day of the calendar quarter commencing on April 1, 2022. 

In addition, GameStop is required to pay a commitment fee of 0.25% for any unused portion of the total commitment under the Credit Agreement.

Source: GameStop News Release, Form 8-K

Loopring CEO Shares Classic Chinese Poem about Justice

Posted on by Joe Fonicello

Cryptic tweets are nothing new to GameStop investors, but Chinese is. What is the Loopring CEO saying on Twitter?

Loopring’s LRC Ethereum token has climbed over 120% in only days as speculation rises that GameStop’s NFT marketplace is launching soon.

On Wednesday, October 27th, GMEdd published source code from Loopring’s public GitHub repository that confirmed the highly-anticipated partnership amongst the ambitious digital pioneers.

The Swordsman (劍客)

While traders attempt to position themselves accordingly, Loopring’s CEO has shared a classic chinese poem on Twitter.

Loopring CEO Daniel Wang tweeted this at 9:37 PM EST on November 1st.

The text originates from Jia Dao’s classic Chinese poem, The Swordsman (劍客).

十年磨一剑

霜刃未曾试

今日把示君

谁有不平事

Jia Dao was a Chinese Buddhist monk and poet active during the Tang dynasty.

According to Dr. James J.Y. Liu, a professor of Chinese and comparative literature, Jia’s poem sums up the spirit of knighthood in four lines.

Here is a translation, courtesy of Andrew W.F. Wong.

For ten long years, a sword I whetted,  
Its frosty blade, as yet, untried.
Today, I hold it unsheathed before you;
Of you, to whom was justice denied?

What does it mean?

The poem can be understood as an analogy of a man, the poet, after studying hard (whetting his sword) for ten years, is now ready to take the imperial examinations (show his sword/swordsmanship to represent scholarship and abilities), pledging that he, as an official (the “swordsman”, as in the title), will right all injustices.  

One explanation is that Wang considers himself the swordsman, and, after years of hard work, he is now ready to present his abilities, GameStop NFT, to the world.

A special thanks to all of the GMEdd readers in China. We appreciate your support!

Source: Daniel Wang on Twitter, Andrew W.F. Wong Translations, Jia Dao on Wikipedia

Consider donating to support research and buy our contributors a coffee.

GameStop Chief Operating Officer Steps Down

Posted on by Joe Fonicello

GameStop Corp.’s latest Form 8-K SEC Filing reveals Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Jenna Owens has departed from the company.

In an SEC filing on October 29th, GameStop Corp. has detailed the departure of the company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Jenna Owens, with the pair having entered into a Separation and Release Agreement. 

The Separation Agreement provides for Ms. Owens’ departure from GameStop, effective October 25, 2021, as the Company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. 

GameStop claims the responsibilities associated with the position are being absorbed by other members of the company’s management team. Owens remains entitled to the following severance benefits in accordance with her existing letter agreement with GameStop: 

(i) six months base pay, 

(ii) an amount equal to the applicable premiums for COBRA continuation coverage for six months and 

(iii) the remaining portion of her sign-on bonus. 

Background

On March 23, 2021, GameStop announced the appointment of Jenna Owens, age 42, as the Company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, effective March 29, 2021. 

Prior to joining GameStop and since 2017, Owens served in a variety of senior roles at Amazon.com, Inc., including Director and General Manager of Distribution and Multi-Channel Fulfillment.

Prior to joining Amazon.com, Inc., Jenna Owens held senior roles at Google, including General Manager of Operations of Google Express from 2012 to 2015 and Head of Operations Efficiency for Americas Ad Sales from 2015 to 2017. 

Owens has also worked in operations and supply chain at McMaster-Carr Industrial Supply Co., and Honeywell Inc. Ms. Owens holds an Interdisciplinary B.A. from Amherst College and an M.B.A. from New York University’s Leonard N. Stern School of Business. 

Jenna Owens’ profile is still live on news.gamestop.com.

GameStop.com’s Leaders page details Jenna Owens’ prior responsibilities at the gaming retailer.¹

As COO, Jenna will be responsible for overseeing functions that include business intelligence, fulfillment, supply chain and store operations. She brings to GameStop approximately two decades of technology, operations, fulfillment, and supply chain experience.

Terms of Employment

Owens entered into a Letter Agreement with GameStop Corp. on March 23, 2021 describing the basic terms of her employment. The Letter Agreement provides that Owens’ starting annual salary would be $200,000 and that she would also be eligible to earn a total of $2,500,000 in sign on bonuses, paid in 24 monthly installments.

The agreement entitled Jenna Owens to a relocation bonus in the amount of $200,000 to assist with the costs of her relocation to the Dallas/Fort Worth area. 

The Letter Agreement also entitled Owens to a number of restricted shares of GameStop’s stock, determined by dividing $9,000,000 by the average closing prices of GameStop’s common stock for the 30 trading days immediately preceding the grant date, detailed in the Form 8-K.

Ms. Owens’ employment was also conditioned on her execution of a non-competition agreement.

Why the sudden exit?

GameStop’s Form 8-K filing does not detail why the company’s Chief Operating Officer has departed, having left on Monday, October 25th. Such is normal for GameStop.

While at GameStop, Owens had controversially introduced the GameStop Operating Principles, asking retail employees to “dramatically improve the speed at which you operate,” and to “stay focused on execution over ideation.”

GameStop’s Operating Principles, as shared on reddit.com/r/GameStop in August.

Although some of these principles would resonate with a tech start-up, they failed to motivate unhappy retail employees, who congregated on Reddit to voice their frustrations.

While the Operating Principles letter was sent under Jenna’s name, some speculate that it wasn’t so black-and-white.

A debate over Jenna Owens’ departure sparked support for the retail-focused COO.

A Redditor under the username ‘Quigonsin’ has an extensive post history on r/GameStop as an employee at the retailer. According to him, the Operating Principles wasn’t Jenna’s writing, and GameStop had simply pinned it on her.

Quigonsin, who claims to have spoken with Owens on numerous occasions, believes that the COO was let go for fighting in brick-and-mortar employees’ favor.

She’s also the only reason we got training hours for new hire keyholders; the new team was gonna stay with zero until she pushed for it. That document definitely wasn’t her.

GMEdd.com has spoken to other verified retail managers who have privately substantiated these claims, adding that Quigonsin and Jenna Owens interacted and had a ‘direct line’.

As Jenna Owens’ responsibilities are now being absorbed by other members of GameStop’s management team per the filing, it remains unclear whether or not GameStop Corp. will recruit for a replacement Chief Operating Officer.

Sources: Form 8-k Departure, Form 8-k Agreement, GameStop Corp. Thirleck on Reddit, Quigonsin on Reddit

¹ After GMEdd.com published this piece, Jenna Owens’ GameStop Leadership Profile was taken down, leading our sources to now point to an archived version.

GameStop’s NFT Marketplace Will Feature Gas-Free, Instant Transactions

Posted on by Joe Fonicello

Posts by Loopring on LinkedIn reveal that GameStop’s soon-to-be-announced NFT marketplace will feature instant, gas-free transactions.

Last night, GMEdd published source code from Loopring’s public GitHub repository that confirmed the highly-speculated partnership amongst the ambitious pioneers.

Prior to this, GMEdd.com had published digital breadcrumbs leading to that same point, detailing how Loopring has the technology that GameStop would require to bridge traditional e-commerce and blockchain and engineer the revolution of gaming.

You know the drill. Read those posts first, then come back. Actually, you’ve probably read them already, considering GMEdd.com crashed amid all the traffic and LRC went up 58.5% today. You’re welcome, Loopring. Sorry if we startled you.

Nobody Rides for Free

In an October 13th, 2021 thread on Twitter, Damiana Amabile, a former Chewy executive turned GameStop Director of Product shared her frustration with completing her first purchase on leading NFT marketplace OpenSea. 

Amabile states that, “the process was not easy,” and that it was eye-opening considering how traditional e-commerce has embraced a one-click/tap checkout experience.

The first tweet in Amabile’s Twitter thread discusses gas fees.

The GameStop Director of Product’s first complaint about OpenSea was that the concept of “gas fees” is so foreign to anyone not in the space. She imagines this is a high drop off point in the conversion tunnel. 

“Gas fees” are the transaction fees that users pay on a blockchain protocol to have their transaction executed. The system works on a standard supply and demand mechanism. 

If there is more demand for transactions, users will be forced to pay more to have their transactions processed quickly and efficiently. Currently, there’s plenty of demand.

High gas fees can be regarded as one of Ethereum’s biggest inhibitors to growth, with little desire for users to complete trades that often cost more than what they’re worth.

High gas fees have plagued Ethereum for over a year.

In a CoinDesk Opinion story from October 14, 2020, former Amazon executive turned CEO of a blockchain education company Michael J. Garbade writes that High Ethereum gas prices make it impossible for ERC-20 projects to run any microtransaction payments on Ethereum, defeating the idea of using the Ethereum network for one of its principal use cases.

Garbade explores one potential solution: zkRollup technology, stating that the trustless protocol from zkSync was, at the time, the most efficient answer.

zkRollup technology has the potential to solve high gas fees on Ethereum’s network

While there are several companies that have built ETH Layer 2 protocols using zkRollup technology, Loopring has since emerged as one of the most advanced and capable of mass-adoption.

Loopring, we’re not done yet

Loopring states that one major advantage of being application specific is that the protocol can optimize Loopring’s L1 footprint to the extreme as opposed to other Layer 2s. 

This means Loopring L2 is much more scalable, faster + less expensive to use than other general purpose Ethereum L2s.

If you’re confused, Loopring’s Head of Community Byron Wiebe can frequently be found answering questions from LRC holders and curious GameStop investors alike on Loopring’s Discord server (to the best of his ability given the circumstances).

Byron answered some questions from ManBearOrca on October 26th.

When asked about delaying the launch until ETH2.0 is live, Byron goes on to state that Loopring’s technology is already capable of handling 4,000 transactions per second currently, “similar capacity to Mastercard daily transactions globally.”

Byron also states that Loopring’s free Layer2 Wallet will be launching simultaneously or prior to the NFT Marketplace, allowing for easy adoption amongst those who aren’t used to crypto.

“We Uh, We Fixed the Glitch.”

In a LinkedIn post today, Loopring has added some commentary on their Q3 2021 Quarterly Update, which was published by Byron.

Loopring announced that they will be enabling NFT support, “allowing anyone to mint and trade NFTs instantly and gas-free.”

Loopring shared this post on LinkedIn on October 28th 2021.

Loopring goes on to state that this functionality is now the foundation of a new NFT Marketplace launching soon.

With Damiana Amabile’s major gripes with NFT transactions solved by Loopring, the gap between traditional e-commerce and blockchain could be bridged.

It’s now beyond a reasonable doubt that GameStop has found a partner for their venture into the future.

We just wouldn’t be so sure that Loopring is the only one.

Sources: Loopring on LinkedIn, Damiana Amabile on Twitter, CoinDesk, Loopring Discord

Join GMEdd.com’s Official Discord Server to chat about this article, GameStop’s transformation, and more.

Consider donating to support research and buy our contributors a coffee.

GameStop Explores Expansion into Web3, NFT Marketplace, and Blockchain Gaming Platform

Posted on by Joe Fonicello

GameStop’s latest job postings share an inside-look at their plans in the metaverse, including blockchain, Web3, and hints towards a futuristic NFT marketplace.

On Friday, GMEdd published clues that Loopring has the technology that GameStop would require to bridge traditional e-commerce and blockchain and engineer the revolution of gaming.

Now that the cat is out of the bag, GameStop isn’t holding back.

GMEdd.com’s #gme-tracker bot has published GameStop’s latest daily job postings since early June 2021, even picking up on some blunders in September. Sorry.

The bot sends the latest jobs postings every day at 11:00 PM EST.

On October 25th, GameStop shared 8 new job listings for 3 different roles within their NFT division, featuring descriptions and requirements detailing the company’s ambitions in the rapidly-evolving industry.

Heard from the grapevine before grapevine

The jobs were posted as remote working opportunities based out of the windy city of Seattle, Washington, the home of GameStop in Grapevine, Texas, and Ryan Cohen’s very own South Florida.

Wow, who would have thought?

We would’ve thought.

GMEdd first publicized GameStop’s corporate expansion into South Florida in May, and Seattle in July. GameStop confirmed the Florida offices in September, and Seattle-based employees have since shared images on Twitter, verifying GameStop’s new grasp on the tech hub of The Pacific Northwest.

GameStop’s latest job listings call to hire a Director of Product Marketing – NFT Platform, Sr Software Engineer – NFT Platform, and a Product Owner – Head of Web3 Gaming.

Three new nifty roles within the ranks for GameStop Corp.

Titles are great, but what do the jobs entail? Take a look at the job descriptions and some of the requests of applicants, pulled right from GameStop Careers.

Director of Product Marketing, NFT Platform

GameStop’s Job Description

Have you built products from scratch? Have you launched new initiatives and grown them to billions in revenue? If so, we want to talk to you. GameStop is looking for a unique individual who is a blend of Product Marketer and Product Owner to help take out NFT platform to the next level. The ideal candidate will have demonstrated success in a high pressure challenging environments, is skilled at developing partnerships internally and externally, and has delivered results in record time.

GameStop’s Job Responsibilities and Nice to haves

Full archive available here

Senior Software Engineer, NFT Platform

GameStop’s Job Description

GameStop is looking for a Sr. Software Engineer to join our NFT/Blockchain team. This role will be remote and will collaborate with a team of engineers, product managers, designers, and business partners distributed across the U.S. In this role, you will help design, build, and maintain highly scalable services and core API components, powering products and features that delight millions of GameStop customers. The ideal candidate will be customer-obsessed, highly collaborative, and passionate about creating customer experiences that are both frictionless and delightful. A passion for gaming, crypto and e-commerce are a plus!

GameStop’s Job Responsibilities and nice to haves

Full archive available here

Product Owner, Head of Web3 Gaming

GameStop’s Job Description

Have you built products from scratch? Have you launched new initiatives and grown them to billions in revenue? Have you dabbled in the new Web3 world? Are you a gamer to your core? If so, you belong here with us.

GameStop is looking for a unique individual who can help accelerate the future of gaming and commerce. In this future, games are the places to go, and play is driven by the things you bring. Future creators won’t just build games but also the components, characters, and equipment. Blockchains will power the commerce underneath.  An ideal candidate will have experience across several domains in gaming, content creation, partnerships, game design/development/mechanics, and a general understanding and experience with Ethereum, NFTs, and blockchain based gaming platforms.

GameStop’s Job Responsibilities and nice to haves

Full archive available here

crypto punk? Welcome aboard.

GameStop states that applicants would be nice to have NFT marketplace experience and knowledge of crypto, Ethereum and Ethereum Layer 2 products for both the Director of Product Marketing and the Senior Software Engineer positions.

Hiring individuals with NFT marketplace and Ethereum Layer 2 experience shouldn’t be a surprise considering clues point toward GameStop launching an NFT marketplace with Ethereum Layer 2-based platform Loopring as early as Q4 2021.

GameStop’s Director of Product Marketing, NFT Platform job position

GameStop states that the Director of Product Marketing will be responsible for the development and execution of the marketing strategy for GameStop’s NFT platform including product go-to-market, creator acquisition & partnerships, and consumer awareness & product adoption.

The Director of Product Marketing is also asked to think big about the future of NFTs, and how they can bring creators, partners, and gamers into the ecosystem more quickly.

Power to the players, Power to the creators, Power to the collectors

The career posting for Senior Software Engineer applicants states that the role will help design, build, and maintain highly scalable services and core API components, powering products and features that delight millions of GameStop customers.

The Senior Software Engineer, NFT, position also asks applicants to be passionate about building innovative customer experiences.

Blockchain will power the commerce underneath

Future creators won’t just build games…

GameStop’s Head of Web3 Gaming posting reads more like a tech startup’s investor pitch deck than a job listing.

In GameStop’s envisioned future, games are the places to go, and play is driven by the things you bring. 

This is beginning to sound bigger than any NFT marketplace we’ve seen yet.

An ideal candidate will have experience across several domains in gaming, content creation, partnerships, game design/development/mechanics, and a general understanding and experience with Ethereum, NFTs, and blockchain based gaming platforms.

When an entire game is built on a blockchain, every interaction within the game is stored and verifiable as new blocks. Most games that utilize blockchain currently only use NFTs to represent in-game assets, allowing players to buy, trade, and sell skins, weapons, pets, and more for real-world money.

Valve, the parent company of Steam, recently updated its distribution onboarding guidelines to ban any applications built on blockchain technology that issue or allow exchange of cryptocurrencies or NFTs.

Blockchain gaming is largely uncharted territory by current tech giants, with Valve’s PC gaming platform Steam quietly banning games featuring NFTs and Blockchain implementations.

Microsoft and Sony, who GameStop Chairman Ryan Cohen used to follow, haven’t even begun to express interest in the disruptive technology.

“Billions, with a b.”

GameStop goes as far as to ask industry thought leaders who have built products from scratch and grown them to billions in revenue to apply for this role. Hopefully it pays well.

Not only is the job description informative towards GameStop’s conceptual future,  so are the listed job responsibilities.

The job responsibilities of GameStop’s Head of Web3 Gaming.

Web3, in the context of Ethereum, refers to decentralized apps that run on the blockchain. These are apps that allow anyone to participate without monetizing their personal data.

[You will] drive GameStop’s future growth engine by building relationships with the newest, and largest game publishers in the world

GameStop’s Head of Web3 Gaming establishing relationships with the newest and largest game publishers in the world would position the company to change the way gamers purchase their digital games, with the potential to utilize blockchain to solve used digital.

The Head of Web3 Gaming would also be in charge of leading integrations with Ethereum Layer 2 environments. 

So what?

The job listings posted on October 25th hint that GameStop is trying to be the first to establish a mass-adopted cross-publisher and cross-platform NFT marketplace for digital assets.

This marketplace will likely utilize Loopring’s zkRollup Layer 2 protocol on Ethereum and explore all blockchain-based opportunities in the global gaming space.

The gaming retailer is looking to deeply understand possibilities for gaming within Web3, which decentralists consider the “Internet of the Future,” utilizing blockchain to provide a safe, secure, and incentivized experience for everyone.

It is clear that GameStop is operating a stealth start-up within the aspiring tech company, and investors should be enthusiastic to see what may be unveiled.

Sources: GameStop Careers 1, 2, 3, Bitcoin.com

Consider donating to support research and buy our contributors a coffee.