GameFly sold to distributor Alliance Entertainment
New owner says it will expand US rental-by-mail service's selection of games, as well as hardware, accessories, and collectibles for sale
US gaming rental service GameFly has been acquired.
GameFly's new parent company is Alliance Entertainment, which bills itself as the largest wholesale distributor of music and movies in the US.
Alliance co-owner and CEO Jeff Walker will hold those same roles at GameFly going forward, even though Alliance has said the rental service will continue operating independently.
"We're intensely focused on listening to what our customers are telling us, and then finding ways to give them what they are asking for," Walker said. "Alliance is the largest distributor of physical media in the US, and we're using our expertise with GameFly's nearly 20 years of experience in subscription game rentals to imagine new offerings that previously were not doable."
GameFly will make some unspecified changes to its subscriptions in the coming months, but Alliance has already said it plans to expand both the catalog of games GameFly users can rent, as well as adding new games, accessories, hardware, collectibles, and movies for sale through GameFly.
GameFly was founded in 2002. Over the years it has sought to expand beyond its core gaming rental by mail service by acquiring digital distribution channel Direct2Drive and streaming service Playcast, but sold those to AtGames and Electronic Arts in 2014 and 2018, respectively.
Update: When asked about layoffs as a result of the acquisition, a GameFly representative said, "There were a handful of positions eliminated after the close, but no more are planned."