Gamers.PH Goes Live Today, Brings Online Auctions and Shopping to Philippines’ Gamers

Gamers.PH launches today, bringing to the Philippines an auction and shopping website that will take online bidding and game-shopping to a whole new level. Now, gamers have the chance to participate in auctions to acquire the latest game titles and gaming gear for almost 80 percent off the retail price. It’s run in partnership with Soldgers, which runs Sold.sg (Singapore) and Sold.my (Malaysia), which are two of the most-talked about auction e-commerce websites in Southeast Asia. This is the first time Soldgers has formed a partnership for its e-commerce platform.

“We are excited to launch Gamers.PH in the country,” says Angeline Tham, one of the founders of Soldgers, in today’s announcement. She added:

The site is run by gamers, so we know by heart what each kind of gamer looks for. From the hottest game releases, to the best deals, competitive gaming equipment and bundles — it’s definitely a shopping haven for gamers. New games pop up all the time and titles fresh off the shelves don’t usually sell cheap. Gamers.PH helps make it possible for these new titles to sell at 50 to 80 percent off the retail price by just participating in the bidding. And that’s where the fun starts.

One of the key suppliers for Gamers.PH will be X-Play Online Games, a video game publisher in the Philippines and a subsidiary of IP Ventures. It’s also an exclusive distributor for Blizzard Entertainment.

According to Boni Ong, VP for sales and distribution at X-Play, “Gamers.PH provides a whole new venue for online auction and shopping. Given how competitive Filipinos can be, we can’t wait to see how they will engage in the online bidding for the best titles and gaming gear.”

How it works

Signing up does not require any credit card information. Those who register during the pre-launch period are given 20 free tokens, while those who register after the launch until end of August 2013 are given 10 free tokens. Tokens are required in order to bid. Gamers can purchase more tokens for PHP 10 ($0.23).

In Gamers.PH, the bid price is determined by the bidder. All auctions start at zero. Every time someone places a bid, the price will be increased by 15 cents and the auction timer will be increased by up to 20 seconds. The bidding ends when the timer reaches zero and the right to buy the item goes to the last successful bidder. In most cases, the final auction price ends up being 60 to 98 percent off the retail price.

There are various payment options, which are G-Cash, Smart Money, Debit (Bancnet), PayPal, cash-on-delivery, and over-the-counter at selected retail partners. It usually takes three to five days if the item is to be shipped within Metro Manila; and five to seven days if outside of the capital.

Launch treats

Members who register before the launch have a chance to win an ‘Extreme Gamers Package’. This includes a Sony LED 32-inch TV, a Sony PlayStation 3 Slim, two Sony Dual Shock controllers; and three PS3 games (NBA 2K13 Dynasty Edition, Bioshock Infinite Premium Edition, and Last of Us Survival Edition).

There is also a free poster, access to the Atomic Blimp and free delivery for those who pre-order Grand Theft Auto V via Gamers.PH. These games will be delivered on the very day that they are launched on September 17.

Gaming gear has been available from online stores such as Lazada Philippines for quite sometime. This is, however, the first time a Philippine auction website will be focusing on gaming. With the heavy price tag significantly reduced – as well as not having to worry about customs tax from international shipping – it’ll be interesting to see how the Philippine gaming community reacts to the new startup site.

Gamers.PH is also engaging with the nation’s gamers via its official accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.