{
  "id": 2137819,
  "title": "Hardware spending in the US was so low in July that it nearly matched the 2020 Pandemic days when everything was out of stock",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/20/hardware-spending-in-the-us-was-so-low-in-july-that-it-nearly-matched",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-08-20T13:05:12.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Eurogamer",
    "slug": "eurogamer",
    "url": "https://www.eurogamer.net/circana-july-2026-hardware-software-sales"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "According to Circana's latest report on US market performance in July, gaming hardware and game sales have significantly decreased. Hardware spending dropped by 29 percent compared to the previous July, mirroring the low sales experienced during the 2020 pandemic when components were scarce. Despite abundant hardware availability today, high prices have had a similar effect as unavailable stock. Additionally, physical game sales reached an all-time low, with 32% of spending going to PlayStation and 63% to Nintendo. The best-selling game in July was Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, and Halo: Campaign Evolved ranked sixth, struggling to match the sales of the Black Ops ports. Overall, spending across games, hardware, and accessories declined by 10 percent in July compared to the previous year. Subscription services were the only category to see growth, increasing by 6 percent. The combination of lower software and hardware sales indicates that console owners are being cautious with their spending, preferring to continue playing popular games rather than purchasing new ones.",
  "summary": "New data from the industry analysts at Circana has revealed that consumers are spending a lot less than usual on gaming hardware or the games themselves. Circana's latest report covers the US market in July, and it includes a lot of concerning data. Read more",
  "key_points": [
    "Hardware spending in US dropped 29% in July",
    "Physical game sales reached all-time low",
    "Subscription services saw 6% growth"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}