sonycowboy
Member
Looks, like they found a way to screw up the launch even with an extra 10 months under they're belts. 185k sold in the first 2 days and some stores haven't supplied all the preorders? Probably the reason we have yet to see a PR from SCEE at this point.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,3604,1579738,00.html
Sony console flies off shelves despite retail malaise
Richard Wray
Wednesday September 28, 2005
The Guardian
There may be a general malaise on Britain's high streets but when it comes to one consumer product, retailers - and therefore consumers - cannot get enough. Sony's handheld games console, the PSP, is flying off shelves and shops are having trouble getting hold of the devices.
Game Group, the UK's largest specialist computer and video game seller, yesterday said some customers who pre-ordered the PSP before it was launched at the start of the month have yet to receive their device, though it hopes to clear the backlog within the next 10 days.
Dixons is also suffering from a lack of stock and is in constant contact with Sony to secure enough to satiate Britain's desperate gamers. "We are nearly a month into sales now and there is still large demand for the PSP. As soon as we put the product on the shelves they are being snapped up," said a spokeswoman for the retailer. Even online shop Amazon.co.uk has been forced to warn customers visiting its website that the item is in short supply.
Sony has already sold about 200,000 PSPs and has pledged to pump 1,000,000 units into the UK market in the run-up to Christmas but yesterday Lisa Morgan, Game Group's deputy chief executive, admitted that sufficient deliveries of the console are unlikely to start rolling into stores until November.
"What we are seeing is we have had the launch of PSP, which was fabulous, but unfortunately we have not seen a lot of replenishment stocks," she said. "This is a product that is very hot at the moment."
Video game retailers are warning that consumers should get their orders in quickly for the next "big thing" among gamers, the launch of Microsoft's new XBox 360 games console in December, if they want to have any chance of playing with it before the New Year.
Microsoft is planning to release the XBox 360 across the US, Europe and Japan over a three-week period. The hype starts on November 22 with the XBox 360's launch in the US, then moves to Europe on December 2 and ends in Japan on December 10.
The computer games industry is in a period of transition with the current generation of games consoles running down ahead of the launch of new platforms. As well as the PSP and XBox 360, Sony will unveil the third version of its successful Playstation console followed by Nintendo's Revolution box.
In the run-up to these new boxes of delight launches, Game Group has seen the price of games for existing consoles plummet to under £20 while consumers - mindful that new platforms are on the way - have stayed away and there have been few new compelling games.
Game, which makes all its profits in the second half of the year, yesterday reported a pre-tax loss for the six months to end July of £14.7m, up from a loss of £3.5m in the previous year. The company, however, raised half-year dividend by 15% to 1.15p in anticipation of a better performance as a result of the launch of the new consoles.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,3604,1579738,00.html
Sony console flies off shelves despite retail malaise
Richard Wray
Wednesday September 28, 2005
The Guardian
There may be a general malaise on Britain's high streets but when it comes to one consumer product, retailers - and therefore consumers - cannot get enough. Sony's handheld games console, the PSP, is flying off shelves and shops are having trouble getting hold of the devices.
Game Group, the UK's largest specialist computer and video game seller, yesterday said some customers who pre-ordered the PSP before it was launched at the start of the month have yet to receive their device, though it hopes to clear the backlog within the next 10 days.
Dixons is also suffering from a lack of stock and is in constant contact with Sony to secure enough to satiate Britain's desperate gamers. "We are nearly a month into sales now and there is still large demand for the PSP. As soon as we put the product on the shelves they are being snapped up," said a spokeswoman for the retailer. Even online shop Amazon.co.uk has been forced to warn customers visiting its website that the item is in short supply.
Sony has already sold about 200,000 PSPs and has pledged to pump 1,000,000 units into the UK market in the run-up to Christmas but yesterday Lisa Morgan, Game Group's deputy chief executive, admitted that sufficient deliveries of the console are unlikely to start rolling into stores until November.
"What we are seeing is we have had the launch of PSP, which was fabulous, but unfortunately we have not seen a lot of replenishment stocks," she said. "This is a product that is very hot at the moment."
Video game retailers are warning that consumers should get their orders in quickly for the next "big thing" among gamers, the launch of Microsoft's new XBox 360 games console in December, if they want to have any chance of playing with it before the New Year.
Microsoft is planning to release the XBox 360 across the US, Europe and Japan over a three-week period. The hype starts on November 22 with the XBox 360's launch in the US, then moves to Europe on December 2 and ends in Japan on December 10.
The computer games industry is in a period of transition with the current generation of games consoles running down ahead of the launch of new platforms. As well as the PSP and XBox 360, Sony will unveil the third version of its successful Playstation console followed by Nintendo's Revolution box.
In the run-up to these new boxes of delight launches, Game Group has seen the price of games for existing consoles plummet to under £20 while consumers - mindful that new platforms are on the way - have stayed away and there have been few new compelling games.
Game, which makes all its profits in the second half of the year, yesterday reported a pre-tax loss for the six months to end July of £14.7m, up from a loss of £3.5m in the previous year. The company, however, raised half-year dividend by 15% to 1.15p in anticipation of a better performance as a result of the launch of the new consoles.
