It's the P5 streaming "regulations" right?
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As Japanese Switch supply shrinks, consumers form long lines for retail "lotteries"
- Thread starter Cerium
- Start date
It's the P5 streaming "regulations" right?
Cuningas de Häme
Member
Guys, just put that neowha or whatever on ignore. Save your time and don't argue with that kind of posters.
Keeps topics cleaner too.
Keeps topics cleaner too.
Funny enough I posted this twice before regarding artificial scarcity but people didn't really take notice of supply issues for the Wii.
https://mobile.nytimes.com/2007/12/14/technology/14iht-wii.1.8746308.html
The Main Event
Member
Hot damn that thirst.
Yep...narratives are becoming pretty imaginative
BTW I have spent one week in Tokyo and looking for Switch was depressing. I at least hoped to find some accessory but also the joycons are sold out...
Rogue Agent
Banned
I hope this is solved soon.
Heck, we got plenty of people believing the earth is flat in this day and age.
So yeah, stupid people are gonna be stupid.
The part about supply shrinking compared to the 1st month suggests to me Nintendo is prioritizing overseas sales over their countrymen.
That is kind of shitty considering that they seem to be meeting their goals in increasing production to match their new shipped for the year target.
That is kind of shitty considering that they seem to be meeting their goals in increasing production to match their new shipped for the year target.
Chuck Tingle should write something on this.
Skittzo0413
Member
Yeah I read that the same way, there should definitely be a big influx of larger shipments to help the numbers track above the 10m unit guidance. If it's true that the production schedule is generally a 5 month process (like in the quote that ggx2ac posted above) then we really shouldn't expect big increases until next month.
Is this true? It had a far bigger US launch than the Wii and a comparable Japan launch even without a holiday season, is it actually tracking behind the Wii?
sixteen-bit
Member
The thirst is real.
I agree. It's ridiculous to say that only 3 months after launch.
And games are coming imcreasingly fast. More and more announcements and E3 in a week.
Moor-Angol
Banned
it's not since Switch stock dropped to 25k weekly that shops use lottery, it's already 2 months that they started to sell switch in the same way they do for PSVR, lottery
the funny thing is that for PSVR you just need that your number is extracted, for Switch you need both number and color; if your number is extracted but the color is different you come back home as you went to shop : with nothing
and I'm sure that during Arms and Splatoon 2 released the stock will magically increase
the funny thing is that for PSVR you just need that your number is extracted, for Switch you need both number and color; if your number is extracted but the color is different you come back home as you went to shop : with nothing
and I'm sure that during Arms and Splatoon 2 released the stock will magically increase
Tarin02543
Member
Here in Belgium I start to notice Switch walls
Yes- stupid Nintendo making sure there is adequate supply for what will most likely be the 2nd biggest launch of the year. Bastards.
Napalm_Frank
Member
Can't they import? Isn't Switch entirely region free?
Deadpool_X
Banned
18 million units may not be enough for this year...
Well, I don't know whether shortages are intentional on Nintendo's part or not, but when literally every piece of hardware they've released in the last decade or so winds up with major supply issues, it's easy to see why people would either blame intentional shortages or severe incompetence, since it happens over and over and over again.
I remember this happened in the early DS Lite days with Japanese consumers resorting to importing western units.
That's just not true. Wii U was available after a week. And was an unmitigated disaster for Nintendo with backed up inventory and missed expectation after missed expectation.
To just ignore that (recent) history when discussing Switch shipments is missing a big part of the picture.
Well except you know... 3DS and Wii U.
Two of their recent products were overshipped (3DS and Wii U), so this idea that Nintendo always underships is not correct either. Nintendo is exceptionally bad at estimating demand for their product (probably somewhat rooted in the fact that their products are often non-standard gaming products), and that really is all there is to this: they misjudged the extent of demand (10 million for a year is still a great improvement from the Wii U, the replacement of which the Switch is marketed as), and are having issues putting in bigger orders due to smartphone competition.
The truth is somewhere in the middle I think, they have to make Switch Splatoon bundles, they're also likely keeping some units away for the launch of ARMS.
The system is much more expensive in Europe, where you get it relatively easy to get one compared to the US.
Japan: 30000 Yen (or 240 EUR)
Europe: 41000 Yen (or 330 EUR)
Add to that shipping and custom fees and it gets even more expensive.
So they probably don't want to import.
Literally every piece if hardware would be two to three (depending on region) in the last decade? NES Classic globally, Switch nearly globally and (recently) n3DS/XL in just the US?
Before that it was Wii globally (lasted over a year) and DS Lite in Japan early on. Before that N64 briefly around launch in the US, before that SNES/SFC around launch in both Japan and US and before that NES around some holidays in the US. Anything else I missed? I know some NES games (SMB2, Zelda II) also had notorious shortages in the US early on. Also things like Wiimotes early on, the Smash GC adapter for Wii U, maybe some other controllers or accessories?
jts
...hate me...
The iPhone is also regularly supply constrained for a few months after launch (as other Apple devices, especially new ones) and Apple are like the example to look to for success in the consumer electronics business, and for a well run company.
The truth is that there isn't a supply magic bullet to perfectly match demand, and if you don't want to risk shortages you have to move from just-in-time inventory and resort to overproduce, overship, flood the market - that creates a whole new set of issues, besides being fiscally irresponsible. It's a huge risk. Hell, it kinda took SEGA out of the hardware business IIRC.
Wandering Robot
Member
I'd say to send some North American units over there, but ha ha...
Hope the supply issues nonetheless clear up soon. Japan'll be a mess upon XX and Splatoon 2 releasing.
Hope the supply issues nonetheless clear up soon. Japan'll be a mess upon XX and Splatoon 2 releasing.
Bamboo 竹
Member
Nintendo really needs to distribute in a better way the Switch stock. In my country (Chile, Latin America) there are Switch nearly everywhere, we even have some BoTW Special Editions scattered on some shops yet. I hope Japan gets to buy the console normally at some point.
....it is not like North America supply condition is any better right now lol.
Two Pikachus
Member
What North American units?
Besides there are scalpers at amazon.co.jp that sell it for 40-45k yen anyway.
Two Pikachus
Member
Rereading it now, I see. Cut me some slack, it's 11 AM and I haven't even had my second pizza yet.
While it is more expensive, it is odd to compare a price that includes tax and one that does not, don't you think?
Tax is insane here, without it the Switch would be 275 Euro. I don't think tax is that high in Japan, is it? And why is it not included in their prices, do they have different ones depending on the different cities or what?
jts
...hate me...
Yeah Nintendo didn't set a MSRP for Europe (they have been fined for something along those lines in the past). Besides, some countries have higher tax and higher purchasing power (and sometimes less sales potential) and all that factors in.
The price actually seems to be stabilising in the 349 now - I bought mine at that price. But the truth is some retailers have charged as high as 379.
Worst case scenario: https://www.gamestop.fi/Nintendo Switch/Games/64813/nintendo-switch-grey-console
Panajev2001a
GAF's Pleasant Genius
So the counter argument to what the other poster said is built upon the one product they released in the last ten+ years that tanked badly?
How would that prove their aptitude at managing supplies?
Panajev2001a
GAF's Pleasant Genius
Any product that tanks / flops / fails to convince buyers to buy is kind of overshipped by definition...
It's not included in the prices because the government is desperate for money and has wanted to raise the tax considerably. They bumped it from 5 to 8 a few years ago, gave the economy a bit of trauma and delayed their plans to move it up to 10 last year. They have not been enforcing the rule to show the tax included price so that things look as if they haven't changed. I believe sales tax can only be imposed by the Japanese government and not prefectures, but as I live in Tokyo I can't really say if that holds true for all of Japan - not an expert in tax law.
I'm not saying they're good at managing supplies- I'm arguing it certainly isn't intentional.
Ah that's why, yeah it's strange that Nintendo does not set one again even being fined for it before in the past. Hopefully it will settle down at 300 later or a MSRP will be forced, because in the worst case price wise it nearly already costs as much as a all new ps pro
It still is selling out in multiple EU countries tho still so i guess not alot of people mind it (the price)?
reelbigtink
Member
Those lines are CLEARLY just people waiting to see New Kids On the Block!
But seriously, they'd better sort this out a bit before Splatoon hits.
But seriously, they'd better sort this out a bit before Splatoon hits.
SmokedMeat
Gamer™
OrbitalBeard
Member
Demand won't be satisfied until early 2018 (perhaps longer). At this point, it's quite clear that even a substantial supply increase won't be able to satiate demand for the console in a number of markets. The Switch is a bona fide success story for Nintendo.
jts
...hate me...
Here in Finland it's a bit of a slow burn sell out from what I can tell. My local supermarket for example seems to get something like 5-8 consoles every 2 weeks and then they go slowly, one by one. But it's not super hard to find a console.Ah that's why, yeah it's strange that Nintendo does not set one again even being fined for it before in the past. Hopefully it will settle down at 300 later or a MSRP will be forced, because in the worst case price wise it nearly already costs as much as a all new ps pro
It still is selling out in multiple EU countries tho still so i guess not alot of people mind it (the price)?
Retailers allocate a lot more shelf space for the PS4, and they always have tons of them.