Yahoo has announced an unprecedented measure that overturns the dynamics of speculative resales: on its popular portals Yahoo Auctions and Yahoo Flea Market, each new video game cannot be sold above the list price for the first month after launch. A decision that comes after years of aggressive scalping that has made it virtually impossible for many Japanese gamers to get their hands on high-demand titles and hardware like PlayStation 5 on day one, forcing them to pay exorbitant amounts or wait weeks for normal availability.
The policy will come into force on November 13, 2025 and will apply exclusively to the video game category, with an automatic cap that will prevent sellers from listing new copies at inflated prices. Yahoo has made it clear that any advert that violates these guidelines will be removed immediately, with repeat offenders at risk of permanent account suspension. This is a significant escalation from previous anti-touting measures, which limited themselves to tackling practices such as sales without real inventory or image theft.
Yahoo’s move is not isolated but is part of a coordinated strategy of the Japanese industry. In June 2025, on the occasion of the launch of Nintendo Switch 2, the Kyoto company had already signed partnerships with Yahoo, Mercari and Rakuten Rakuma to prevent unauthorized insertions of the new console. This collaborative framework allows marketplaces to share information about problematic sellers and implement proactive takedowns before speculative listings even go viral.
In the official statement, Yahoo explicitly acknowledged how the most requested items are systematically resold at significantly higher than the manufacturer’s recommended price immediately after launch, generating problems for both consumers and developers. The scalping phenomenon in Japanese gaming has reached worrying peaks in recent years, with automated bots emptying online stocks in seconds and retailers profiting from 200-300% margins on first-party Nintendo titles or limited edition JRPGs.
The Japanese approach contrasts sharply with what happens in the West, where marketplaces like eBay or StockX continue to allow speculative resales without particular limitations, leaving price regulation to the market. The cultural difference is evident: while in Japan a concept of fair and respectful trade towards the community is favored, in the USA and Europe a free market logic prevails which often penalizes ordinary players in favor of professional speculators.
It remains to be seen whether this initiative will also have an effect on gaming hardware resales, a sector where scalping is even more aggressive. For now, Yahoo is focusing exclusively on software, but the technological and legal infrastructure put in place could easily also extend to consoles, accessories and collector’s editions.
