PayMore Launches “Level Up” as Gamers Enter a Major Hardware Upgrade Cycle

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PayMore Launches “Level Up” as Gamers Enter a Major Hardware Upgrade Cycle

2026-10-06 22:04 Last Updated At：22:10

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct 6, 2026--

As major game releases and new hardware push gamers toward their next console upgrade, PayMore is turning its view of the secondary electronics market into a new consumer promotion.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261005355816/en/

PayMore, a leading electronics resale franchise approaching 150 locations across the U.S. and Canada, today announced Level Up, running now through November 20 at participating U.S. and Canadian locations. The promotion will give customers who sell a qualifying gaming system their regular cash offer plus a $10 PayMore promotional gift card ($10 CAD in Canada).

The launch comes ahead of the November 19 release of Grand Theft Auto VI for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. For gamers still using previous-generation PlayStation 4 or Xbox One hardware, playing the highly anticipated title will require moving to a supported console. At the same time, Nintendo Switch 2 is driving another hardware cycle among owners of the original Switch.

PayMore’s own transaction data shows the scale of the secondary market behind those upgrades. In a single recent month, the company’s U.S. stores purchased nearly 10,000 gaming systems from consumers, putting hundreds of thousands of dollars back into customers’ hands. Historical company data also shows thousands of gaming systems moving through PayMore stores month after month, including throughout the 2025 holiday quarter.

The activity spans PlayStation, Nintendo and Xbox systems across multiple generations, giving PayMore a growing view into how consumers are buying, selling and upgrading gaming technology.

“We have a front-row seat to the way consumers are changing how they think about the technology they own,” said Stephen Preuss, CEO of PayMore. “Across our network, we see thousands of gaming systems come through our doors month after month. People are realizing that upgrading doesn’t have to mean starting from zero. There can be real value in the technology they’re replacing, and we’ve built PayMore to make accessing that value simple, safe and immediate.”

PayMore’s data also shows continued activity across previous-generation hardware, even as newer consoles enter the market. For consumers, that means an upgrade does not necessarily eliminate the resale value of the system being replaced.

“We see the technology cycle play out in our stores every day, and gaming is a particularly clear example of it,” said Erik Helgesen, President and Co-Founder of PayMore. “GTA VI creates a very specific hardware decision for someone who is still playing on a PS4 or Xbox One, while Nintendo players are already making similar decisions around moving from Switch to Switch 2. What consumers may not realize is that the system they’re replacing can still have demand and resale value, which can help offset the cost of upgrading.”

The convergence of major game releases, newer hardware and the approaching holiday season creates a timely opportunity for consumers to assess gaming technology they may no longer use. While consumers have long recognized the resale value of smartphones, gaming consoles and other consumer electronics can also retain value well after their owners are ready to move on.

From October 5 through November 20, customers will receive their regular cash offer plus a $10 PayMore promotional gift card ($10 CAD in Canada) for each qualifying gaming console or gaming system sold to PayMore, with no limit on the number of bonuses a customer can earn.

PayMore stores evaluate devices in person and provide customers with an offer based on factors including model, age, condition and current market demand. In addition to gaming systems, PayMore buys and sells smartphones, laptops, tablets and other consumer electronics.

Consumers in the U.S. and Canada can find their nearest PayMore location and learn more about the Level Up promotion at https://paymore.com/level-up-gaming-2026/.

About PayMore

PayMore was founded in 2011 in Massapequa, New York, with a mission to give unwanted electronics a second life by recirculating viable devices back into the marketplace and responsibly recycling technology that has reached the end of its useful life. What started as a single store on Long Island has grown into a leading electronics resale franchise with more than 140 operating locations across the United States and Canada and nearly 500 locations in development.

PayMore began franchising in 2020 and provides a safe, convenient way for consumers to buy, sell and trade electronics, including smartphones, laptops, tablets, gaming systems and other consumer technology. In 2025, PayMore was named a Gold Stevie® Award Winner for Company of the Year in Green and Clean Technology, recognizing its commitment to sustainability and innovation in the electronics resale industry.

PayMore Stores is a new-age global franchise driving the modern evolution of elevated retail, disrupting the second-hand industry with nimble brick-and-mortar locations propelled by technology, data and e-commerce.

The Latest: Trump agrees to have his super PAC, not taxpayers, pay for his ads

In response to a major backlash, President Donald Trump says he will stop using taxpayer funds for television advertisements glorifying himself and instead tap his super PAC to cover such costs going forward. Trump defended the use of at least $1.5 million in federal funds to pay for the ads, saying Monday that they were “positive promotion for our Great U.S.A.”

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is calling Trump “deranged and dangerous” for suggesting in a campaign speech Monday night that Iran could attack cities in his Democrat-led state. “Let ’em take out Los Angeles. Let ’em take out San Diego,” Trump said. “This is a very small price to pay.”

And Paramount closed its $81 billion purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, the companies announced Tuesday — forming a new Hollywood giant now called Skydance that brings two of America’s oldest moviemaking studios together along with streaming services, CNN and CBS. Many industry figures warned the merger would lead to American voices being silenced, but Trump promoted it while attacking network reporting.

The Latest:

Thousands of movie stars, writers, directors and other professionals announced their “unequivocal opposition” to the Paramount-Warner merger in an open letter that warned of fewer jobs and “less choice for audiences in the United States and around the world.” Sally Field said while accepting her Emmy award that “unique storytelling matters” and “we can’t let those voices be silenced, or compromised or merged.”

But Tom Cruise and James Cameron were among those backing the merger as David Ellison reiterated his commitment to filmmaking and said CNN would maintain editorial independence.

Trump has regularly attacked CNN’s reporting, attempting to bar the outlet from the White House altogether. Days after Paramount launched its hostile bid for Warner, the president said that CNN spread “poison and lies” and added that “it’s imperative that CNN be sold.” Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth told reporters after the launch of the Iran war that “the sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.”

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Paramount closed its $81 billion purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, the companies announced Tuesday — forming a new Hollywood giant now called Skydance.

The merger promoted by the Trump administration brings two of America’s oldest moviemaking studios together — along with HBO Max, titles ranging from “Harry Potter” to “Sinners” and even networks like CNN will soon find themselves under the same roof as Paramount+, CBS and the likes of “Top Gun” and “The Godfather.”

“Today is a historic day, not just for Skydance but for our entire industry,” CEO David Ellison, who will lead the company alongside his new co-CEO Ynon Kreiz, said in a statement.

The government-funded television ads glorifying the president that have drawn a sharp bipartisan backlash have cost more than $11 million in federal money as of Tuesday, according to estimates from AdImpact, which tracks media spending.

Trump said Monday night he would stop using taxpayer funds to pay for the ads, instead tapping MAGA Inc, his super PAC, to cover the costs going forward. The president provided no details on whether taxpayers would be reimbursed for ads that already aired, nor how he would go about having his political organization pay for such future advertising.

The ads were slated to cost up to $20 million, with money coming from the Department of Homeland Security.

The White House has defended the ads as public service announcements.

AAA says the average price of diesel gas in the United States Tuesday is $6.32 a gallon. That’s below diesel’s all-time record of $6.53 in September, but still far above the $3.68 a gallon it was a year ago, before Trump launched his war on Iran.

Trump signed an executive order at his Nebraska rally Monday night that he claimed would bring down sky-high diesel prices by allowing anyone to purchase red-dyed diesel tax-free. Diesel fuel prices have spiked due to the war in Iran, but dyed diesel fuel is cheaper because it’s exempt from federal and state excise taxes. Trump called his order an “unprecedented step to bring down costs” amid escalating pressure to address surging prices ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

But Patrick De Haan of GasBuddy, which monitors national gasoline and diesel prices, noted ahead of Trump’s order that it won’t help farmers, who already use red-dyed diesel. “Taxes aren’t the problem, supply is,” De Haan wrote on X.

During his rally Monday night in Nebraska, Trump was going through his usual insistence that gas prices are only temporarily high and worth it as part of his war on Iran.

Then he added a new wrinkle, floating the idea that Tehran could “take out” two major American cities.

“They could take out a city,” he said. "Let ‘em take out Los Angeles. Let ’em take out San Diego.”

He continued as the crowd laughed and cheered: “This is a very small price to pay, and it’s going to be over with very soon.”

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who may run for president in 2028, answered on X, calling Trump “deranged and dangerous.”

Trump has a history of denigrating U.S. cities, especially the largest ones that lean heavily Democratic. Los Angeles was among the cities where Trump deployed federal military personnel for what he said was a crackdown on crime, despite local authorities not wanting the troops.

At a recent North Carolina campaign rally, Trump said the state’s cities are “blood-soaked killing fields.” North Carolina’s violent crime rate ranks in the middle third of states, according to FBI statistics.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio hailed the role of diplomacy in resolving conflicts as he began a three-nation tour of NATO allies in Iceland, where concerns over the Trump administration’s often brusque approach to traditional friends and partners have stirred unease.

Rubio met Tuesday with Icelandic Foreign Secretary Thorgerdur Katrín Gunnarsdóttir at Reykjavik’s Hofdi House, the site of the 1986 summit between former U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev that is widely regarded as the beginning of the end of the Cold War.

“The house symbolizes diplomacy’s role in ending the Cold War and defeating communism,” Rubio posted on social media after the talks that took place just days before the 40th anniversary of the landmark Oct 11-12 meeting.

Despite an agreement signed last month between the U.S., Denmark and Greenland that eased fears of Trump taking over Greenland. Iceland has been uneasy about Trump’s intentions toward it after posting a map showing the colors of the U.S. flag sprawling across all of North America and including Iceland and Greenland.

Political advertising warns about Democratic plots to defund the police. Campaign events feature law enforcement unions and tough talk about law and order. Stump speeches boast about record low levels of violent crime.

From coast to coast, Republicans are focusing on public disorder, illegal immigration and violent crime in midterm campaigns as voters sour on their party’s handling of the cost of living and the war with Iran.

The messaging reflects a belief that lawlessness is safer political ground in the midterms despite Donald Trump’s own criminal record for paying hush money to a porn star, making him the only president to be convicted of a felony. Democrats have tried to counter the attacks by recruiting candidates with law enforcement backgrounds and emphasizing their own anti-crime plans, but Republicans believe it’s a rare opportunity to go on the offensive in an otherwise challenging year.

Trump returned to the topic on Monday night in Nebraska, warning about how the country used to be before he returned to the White House.

“We had a border with people pouring in, crime like nobody’s ever seen,” he said.

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Trump has approved the execution by firing squad of Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan for the 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas.

The U.S. military has not carried out the death penalty since 1961. The Army secretary will decide a time and place for the execution, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell wrote in a post on X.

Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, walked into a medical building where soldiers were getting medical checkups, shouted “Allahu akbar” — Arabic for “God is great!” — and opened fire with a laser-sighted handgun. Thirteen people were killed and more than 30 injured.

He said it was an effort to stop them from going to Afghanistan and killing his fellow Muslims and made almost no effort to defend himself at trial. He told jurors that evidence would show he was the shooter and described himself as a soldier who had “switched sides.”

Trump’s approval triggers a series of procedural steps toward carrying out the execution, but Hasan could put them on hold — potentially for years — with a habeas corpus appeal in the civilian federal court system, according to an article published in May in the magazine Army Lawyer.

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Trump on Monday criticized election officials in Arizona’s Maricopa County after about 3,000 ballots were mistakenly mailed early to voters.

The miscue, blamed on a vendor error, would have no effect on the voters who received the ballots, the county recorder’s office said. Maricopa County has about 2.5 million registered voters.

The president, as he typically does ahead of an election, has been ramping up his rhetoric around voting as Election Day draws near in this year’s midterm elections, with control of Congress at stake.

His latest comments referred to a vendor error that came to light over the weekend. The Maricopa County Recorder’s Office, which is run by Republican Recorder Justin Heap, said Sunday that Runbeck Election Services told the office that it “mistakenly mailed 3,126 early ballots the previous day,” six days before they were scheduled to be sent to voters for this year’s midterm elections.

The ballots were mailed to the correct voters, are still valid and can be completed and returned normally by those voters, the recorder’s office said in a statement.

Jeff Ellington, president and CEO of Runbeck Election Services, said Monday that Maricopa County was not at fault in the snafu.

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President Donald Trump said Monday that he will stop using taxpayer funds for television advertisements glorifying himself, which sparked a major backlash, and instead tap his super PAC to cover costs going forward.

In a post on his social media site, Trump defended the ads, which cost at least $1.5 million in federal funds and have drawn intense criticism. Trump said they were “positive promotion for our Great U.S.A.”

“This is a rather standard thing to do,” the president wrote, while blaming intense criticism for using taxpayer funds on the ads on the “Radical Left.” But the president added that he’d “decided to do the Patriotic Ads, among others, and pay for them myself, and with money I raised for MAGA, Inc.”

That is Trump’s political war chest, which had amassed more than $400 million by the end of July. Trump has begun to tap it to boost Republican candidates around the country ahead of midterm elections.

Trump provided no details on reimbursing taxpayers for ads that already aired, nor how he would go about having his political organization pay for such future advertising.

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