Back; Here is something to consider.

from surfergirl:

3) Have you ever seen millions of dollars used to market console DLC? Something called GTAIV will change that

I honestly didn't expect this from that franchise. I don't know what exactly Rockstar has in mind, but this could have some really profound effects on the gaming public's opinion of downloadable content.

For instance:

• If they release content regularly for this game for a fee, (regularly being 4-6 months between installments, fee being $20), they stand to make an incredible amount of money from this. The market for potential customers for this sort of thing would be far greater than the market for the most similar service I can think of, an MMO. We know the market would be greater based on how people, in general, feel about the GTA franchise (they love it). This could cause a paradigm shift in the industry and cause more companies to invest in downloadable content.
  
• I forgot my second point
• Third point: if this is successful enough, might we see some crossover into the GTAIV gaming space of real world products? Could, for example, some edgy entertainment brand pay some serious bux to Rockstar developers to create a campaign based on, or related to, their product/service? I'm thinking something like the way some companies have decided to inhabit Second Life, but far less, uhm, esoteric than Second Life is. If anyone is confused about why the mass brand expansion into Second Life isn't blowing up the way some thought it would, consider that Second Life's core users may not be the kinds of people who consume the brands that are extending themselves into the world. Don't make me show you explicit pictures of weird Second Life avatars to drill the point home.