How the hell can you tell which employee swiped the code and when? It's not like there's anything to actually steal. In fact, using the code of a shelf copy might not even count as theft since theft is most often described as an unlawful taking of property. If a person doesn't actually take the card and simply memorizes the code, that memorized information might not qualify as property.
And remember something. This is already a problem, just a smaller one. Nintendo puts those registration codes in their games people can use to earn coins on the official site. GameStop doesn't take any precautions to protect those codes. They never guarantee the code will work for used copies, of course, but even shelf copies that are supposed to be pristine albeit unwrapped might not have working codes for this very reason. I actually don't know what GameStop would do if somebody returned with a shelf copy and complained about the code not working.
But since most people don't really care about registering their Wii games to get a Mario hat or some other trinket, they don't complain in large numbers. And since the benefit of swiping the codes is so limited, most people don't do it anyway. But what happens if people figure out swiping the codes from shelf copies saves them $10 on their used copy? I think it's going to become pretty common. Then what happens when somebody's new $60 copy of Madden turns out to not have a working online code?
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