NVIDIA revives 'priority access' program to help buyers beat scalpers to RTX 5090 or 5080 GPUs

NVIDIA has put its priority access scheme back into action - an initiative brought in with RTX 4000 GPUs - in an effort to defeat scalpers, and give genuine buyers of the RTX 5090 and 5080 a fair crack at securing a GPU.

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Higher-end third-party graphics cards like this aren't part of NVIDIA's scheme (Image Credit: GIGABYTE)

NVIDIA explains that with the 'Verified Priority Access' program will give a "limited number of verified GeForce gamers & creators in the United States the opportunity to purchase one GeForce RTX 5090 or RTX 5080 Founders Edition graphics card from the NVIDIA Marketplace."

So, the catches are that this is US-only (so far), and that you only get a chance to buy a Founders Edition (not any third-party boards, if you'd prefer a more heavyweight top-end option).

Still, this is clearly a useful step forward in trying to prevent price gougers from doing their thing and subsequently selling RTX 5090 or 5080 models on auction sites for ridiculous money.

The other requirement is that you need an NVIDIA account to register your interest to make a priority access purchase, and that account must have been created on or before January 30, 2025.

Obviously enough, that's to stop the bad guys from creating an account now to get in on this offer.

Last time around, the priority access program made having the GeForce Experience installed a requirement, which was initially a source of controversy, given that a lot of folks preferred to avoid it (and just run with the bare Game Ready graphics drivers). Of course, nowadays we have the NVIDIA App instead, anyway (and as mentioned, you do still need an NVIDIA account, or you're out of luck).