PS3's French Debut- A Total Disaster: 95% of Consoles Left Unsold
Oh, Sony, Sony where art thou? Europe apparently doesnt want Sonys expensive PlayStation 3, with the French organizers describing the Paris launch of the PS3 a non-event.
As expected, Sony fans here in Europe turned out to be not so true-blue to their favorite brand, some of them starting to bash Sony for its infatuation and for the high price established in the PAL areas for the PS3.
Although they are receiving the PlayStation 3 six months later than the Americans or the Japanese, European gamers get a more expensive and less powerful console (with reduced backwards compatibility).
If Americans are (still) able to buy a high-end PS3 for $599 and the Japanese gamers can even acquire it for ¥49,980 (US$412)- the low-end version- Europeans have to pay for it 599 (US $779) or £425 (US $840) respectively, while Australians and New Zealanders will pay at least A$1,000 (US $785) or NZ $1,200 (US $839) in their respective markets (I have seen a New Zealander who said he paid NZ $1500). By comparison, PlayStation 3 with the 60 GB hard drive costs ¥59,980 (US$494) in Japan
The cheaper version, which is available in Japan and the U.S. for ¥49,980 (US$412) and US$500, respectively, wont be offered in PAL countries due to "retailer and customer demand," according to SCEI.
Apparently Sony had everything prepared for a massive and impressive debut of the PS3 on the French market, but company officials worst expectations came true: the failure was sounding.
Yesterday, in the evening before the launch (March 22) more than 200 journos gathered underneath the Eiffel Tower, but soon realized something was wrong: the streets around the tower were empty, and, as the time passed by, Sony officials began to worry. A little late, I might add
The only faithful French fans of Sony are truly amazed to find themselves alone (in the dark
). Serge, 31, tries to come up with an explanation: Its true that its expensive, but with a HD player, its worth it. Frank, 19, whos been waiting for more than 7 hours, begins to feel the regret: Im disappointed, theres nobody here. I could have waited tomorrow [March 23]. Moreover, theyve promised us animations and nothing happens.
Next to the launch site are Kevin, 21, from Montfermeil, with his two friends Céline and Michel. Kev has been a Sony fan for 10 years and is now the happy owner of a PS1 and a PS2, but surprisingly he was pushed back by the security forces when he tried to approach PS3s ground zero. I come from the suburbs, probably my face is repelling, he jokes.
About 40 police officers were mobilized for protection, although there was about the same number of persons gathered at the Eiffel Tower to celebrate Sonys event. We were told to prepare for at least 3000 persons said one of the officers, who also declared that they were instructed to permit only those who had a means of payment to pass (cash or credit card).
Sony had previously announced the projection in HD of SCEIs Casino Royale, the latest installment in the James Bond series, but instead the OSS 117: Le Caire nid d'espions, was projected. OSS 117 is a 2006 French film directed by Michel Hazanavicius, and is a parody of the spy film genre. The film follows the exploits of a French secret agent, OSS 117, in Cairo in 1955. It was sort of a metaphor for an evening literally deserted.
Close to 22hrs the journalists receive an SMS from the French Xbox marketing team: the Xbox team wishes you a good evening ("la Xbox team vous souhaite une bonne soirée"). Soon after that a small military boat flanked with Xbox loves you messages appears, carrying a group of Microsoft employees who defy the enemy. The world around them laughs but not the Sony employees.
All they wait now is probably the end of this nightmare. A FNAC responsible (the co-organizer of the event) enumerates the possible causes for this failure: Wiis success, bad weather, badly chosen launch date and finally the price of the console have made this evening a non-event.
At 23hrs, a FNAC store-boat reaches at last Seine rivers shore, accompanied by a huge inflatable PS3, which is lit by an immense projector situated on the other shore. The giant screen now presents images with PS3 games, but nobody gives a damn, because of the Arctic cold outside.
Finally, midnight. Without cheers or applauses the first buyers are invited to step on the store-boat, and soon the first happy PS3 owners in France are interviewed by the crowd of journalists, who are more numerous. Only about 50 consoles were sold from the 1,000 available
Not far away, on Champs Élysées, the FNAC store specially opened for the PS3 launch- just like other 12 stores of the group in the entire France- sees its PlayStation 3 consoles stalling on the shelves. Here, from the 1,000 consoles available, less than 300 found their owners
Ill keep you informed with what happens in other Euro-zones so stay tuned for more.
