As others have pointed out, people buying things with bitcoins (whether through Bitpay or similar service, as seems to be generally the case, or by direct barter) is the same thing as selling them. Besides acting to lower the price of bitcoin, that is the opposite of "hodling", right?
Ordinary people still have no reason to use bitcoins (rather than old money) to buy things on retailers like Overstock. So that option should not bring more old money (USD etc) to the Bitcoin market.
Speculators and miners who want to leave the Bitcoin game now have the option to cash out in merchandise (at a few merchants) rather than in old money. That only makes it a bit easier for them to decide to leave, and hence take old money out of the market.
So the Overstock news is "good news" only for True Believers, who did not need it to believe anyway...
Ordinary people still have no reason to use bitcoins (rather than old money) to buy things on retailers like Overstock. So that option should not bring more old money (USD etc) to the Bitcoin market.
Speculators and miners who want to leave the Bitcoin game now have the option to cash out in merchandise (at a few merchants) rather than in old money. That only makes it a bit easier for them to decide to leave, and hence take old money out of the market.
So the Overstock news is "good news" only for True Believers, who did not need it to believe anyway...
A big brand using Bitcoin is good for marketing. More people will hear about it. So this should bring more "old money" to the bitcoin market.