Japan: No Rent Policy

In Japan, you cannot rent video games or systems.  Of course, there are stores that notoriously allow you to rent CDs and make copies but that's a different story.  Japanese law goes so far as to even prosecute stores that implement quick buy back policies for games offering consumer 80-90% of the purchase price back after a week or so of use.

While renting systems in the U.S. has apparently gone the way of the dinosaurs, there is a healthy appetite for game rentals considering the rising prices of games and the increasing number of sub-par content.  How does this differing dynamic in Japan affect consumer habits there?  Does it make the Japanese consumer that much more of a discerning consumer before taking the plunge?   Does this sort of policy advance the market for games or impede it?

Japanese Stores, Buyback