With xmas days away 360 stock being near-impossible to get (unless you enjoy sleeping outside in winter) it's safe to say Microsoft blew the release of the 360.

Sony must have a big smile on their faces.

I would say so. I think they shouldve brought out as much systems as they couldve. The demand was so high, they couldve sold alot of xbox's. MS will be lucky if the revolution and ps3 are released next winter. If not, and both come in spring as expected, More ppl will buy the ps3 rather than the 360

Dunno about that - Sony has seen a lot more bad press lately than MS, and they're really blowing it with the PSP (or I might already have one). PS3 hardware will have some pros and some cons vs. the 360, but they won't have Live or Marketplace, and they'll probably destroy any redeeming qualities of the hardware trying to 'protect' it.

I think that people are blowing this 360 thing a bit out of proportion. I seem to remember that when Sony realesed the PS2 they wern't exactly easy to get either. I do aggree that MS may have rushed to market and not met demand but I don't think it will have that much effect on the total sales of the units. If someone is willing to pay $500 for a console chances are they really want it and I don't think a little difficulty in finding one for X-mass will make them boycot it compleatly. Just my 2 cents.

PS - I just went to a Local Superstore here in Moncton to pick-up a play and charge kit and they had 2 premium systems there on the shelf.

There are systems out there on the shelves still you just have to look for them. It seems to be more popular in some areas then others. I don't consider it a blunder, but all the press it's been given (which no dought is helping them sell) is overkill. It does sound better that a console is sold out rather then having only sold a fraction of their inventory at launch. Expect Sony to also use the same strategy with PS3 next fall.

you guys arent making sense :) microsoft didnt "blow" anything, and it wasnt up to them how many units they released. they basically had 2 options, release them early and as they are produced, or hold out and stock up and release them all at once. obviously earlier is the better business decision, it was either going to be a small amount or none at all. i dont see how this creates an advantage for sony.

you cant just snap your fingers and have them appear, they actually have to be manufactured.

you cant just snap your fingers and have them appear, they actually have to be manufactured.

Then who do you blame for not manufacturing enough units or selling units outside of N. America while a shortage was still here?

Then who do you blame for not manufacturing enough units or selling units outside of N. America while a shortage was still here?


So do you think that MS should do in North Amarica what sony does in Japan. Release everything here 6 months to a year before everywhere else? I think Microsoft is trying to market itself like the global company that it is.

Then who do you blame for not manufacturing enough units or selling units outside of N. America while a shortage was still here?

physics i guess? the fact that resources are finite is the only thing to "blame". it was either that or nothing at all. obviously some is better than none.

I Think That the lack of availability Has and will definately Hurt MS, Over the
long Haul. I know that Myself and others who were looking to buy on or near release day are now just saying **** it and with the reported issues are now just gonna sit back and wait till spring and see what the PS3 Has to offer. So Has it hurt them, I say more then likely, I may still buy a 360 in the spring but
I might just buy a PS3 now whereas if the supply had of been availible there would be a X360 sitting under the tree right now.

there were numbers released on sales of 360 systems

According to NDP Microsoft has sold 325,902 Xbox 360 consoles in North America. In the same timeframe MS sold 556,221 original Xbox consoles when it launched.


so - did M$ not make enough units?

I guess it comes down to will Sony do any better. I am sure there will be lots of MS fanboys chiming in with every little error that Sony make when ever the PS3 comes. This launch feels about the same as the original Xbox and PS2 launches to me.

I'm pretty sure the people in Europe who typically get the "shaft" when it comes to technology releases will probably disagree with you.

I appreciate that Microsoft wanted to do a worldwide release but in my opinion they should have delayed Japan and moved those consoles to North American and Europe first then release the console to Japan early in 2006.

If you didn't get a 360 yet then really it's your own fault. It was obvious way back in September that getting one would be difficult and if you didn't preorder, camp out or do any research to find out the best way to get a 360 then you simply wouldn't be getting one this year.

That being said, where I live had a few CORE models this weekend in stock, I was asked at two different stores (after curiously inquiring if they had stock) if I wanted to buy their last CORE model.

In hindsight it seems like they shouldn't have made so many for Japan so early, but I guess they were hoping for a better reaction than they got. They have a lot of problems in Japan - bad taste left over from original Xbox, PS3 will launch there first so they really wanted to get it there ASAP, poor selection and quality of launch titles for Japan (what is that game they bundled in with it - apparently its just horrific), etc. Would have made a few gamers here happier if those units had been destined for NA instead. Of course, all the people w/o HDTV who snapped up the 360 probably didn't help the rest either - given the selection of games (and limited b/c) I just don't see the value of the box and new live features being worth it enough for them to be early adopters when they can't get the visuals.

Keep in mind that this is MS strategy. MS is probably the best company in the world when it comes to marketing, so it is safe to say that they knew what they were doing. Regardless of how much bad press they get, they know that in order to beat Sony, the XBox360 needs to get a bigger market share in Asian and Europe. More game consoles sell in Asian than in North America so no matter how many they sell the first day, first week or first year, they need to get the Asian and Europe market. Unfortuantely, the release in Japan was worst than the original XBox.

No matter what happens, people here in North America are going to buy the Xbox360 whether it is released now or in 3 - 6 months. We seem to be more impatient about things here and are also more excepting of buying a system which we know is plagued with problems.

Think of it this way, we all read the problems the XBox360 was having the first week it was released, yet they are still being sold as soon as they hit the stores, and it will continue like this until probably February '06, which of course will bolster their first quarter sales of next year.

What a horrible launch:

Two months after its introduction, Microsoft's Xbox 360 is still an elusive prey for shoppers in the USA and might well remain so until spring. (http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2006-01-23-xbox-demand_x.htm)

Demand outpacing supply, the poor foolish bastards.

I'd say it was a huge success.

325,902 consoles sold... If those were only core systems that's
$130, 034, 898 (not chump change). In addition, almost every person that bought a 360 purchased 1 game, and an additional controller. That’s another $35, 492, 220.

Lack of inventory increases demand for the product, which affords them the ability to charge $399 for a core system, and $499 for a premium. If the marketplace was flooded with 360's everyone would wait 'till the price dropped before they bought one. I bet you that supply will equal demand by the time the PS3 come out and they start a price war. Do you think that will be just a coincidence?

Another thing to take into consideration is that it's not Microsoft selling you units, it's the retailer. If Microsoft manufactured excess inventory the retailers would stuff their shelves with inventory. If the retailer purchases too much stock (supply exceeding demand) they are forced to cut prices to move stock. Taking this into consideration most retailers do not reduce their margin as a means of lowering the resale, they normally ask their supplier for rebates, or "spiffs". This would not be advantageous for Microsoft now would it?

The bottom line is…….
These are some of the smartest (and highest paid) business people on earth. They will receive huge incentives for making their sales numbers, and they have huge resources at their disposal.
If there was a possibility of making this more successful don’t you think they would have???

Don't hate the player. Hate the game.

Sorry. It has been a huge blunder. An initial short-fall is to be expected and if done properly produces more demand.

An extended shortfall hurts sales especially with another next-gen system on the horizon. People who may have jumped on the xbox boat are starting to reconsider, at least until the PS3 comes out and a valid comparison can be made.

For XBOX, who wants to be the market leader this time and hoped to use their head start to get a lot of units out there, they certainly are throwing their advantage and strategy out the window.

Sorry. It has been a huge blunder. An initial short-fall is to be expected and if done properly produces more demand.

An extended shortfall hurts sales especially with another next-gen system on the horizon. People who may have jumped on the xbox boat are starting to reconsider, at least until the PS3 comes out and a valid comparison can be made.

For XBOX, who wants to be the market leader this time and hoped to use their head start to get a lot of units out there, they certainly are throwing their advantage and strategy out the window.

Proteosome,

With all due respect, your argument holds very little water, and is strictly your personal opinion (not fact)

How will this hurt their sales, when they are selling every unit that is produced? They can do whatever they want. Microsoft currently has monopolized the market with what is currently an extremely inelastic product. They are gaining more and more market share by the day. Do you think that it is only the original Xbox owners that are buying these consoles? Not likely.

Look at it this way. How many units does Sony have out?.....Zero, so who blundered their launch Sony with zero dollars in sales, or Microsoft with $500 000 000 in sales of the 360 since Nov 22nd . At this point Microsoft has 100% of the “next gen “market with the only “next gen console” out there (until the PS3 arruves). This could hardly be considered a blunder.

You'll see.....Once the PS3 arrives the market will be filled with 360's. Call it a blunder if you like. I know from direct contact that Microsoft is calling it a huge success.