Heh, hey! I've been catching up on the thread.
Yeah, Best Buy and other retailers don't make those kinds of deals without having the backup of Vendor Credit and other rebates associated with manufacturer coverage. Unless a product has reached "End of Life", where it's considered at risk and useless, if a product is discounted like that, it's because we've received assurance of cost coverage. We have monthly "SSB" or Store Send Back shipments, where product is evaluated at a corporate level, and if it's not met the demand anticipated, it gets either reallocated to stores where it sells, or it gets sent back to the manufacturer for a refund.
And it's been interesting to follow up on sales, now that the PS4 is becoming more readily stocked... XB1 numbers have started to stagnate again, or at least drop off, with the PS4 typically having a 2:1 sales average per week in every store in a district. Sony shifted a LOT of inventory our way last month, and it looks like that has continued to remain a high priority, though I hope the EU starts getting more inventory, because as much as it's still selling well, the demand overseas is still crazy.