Companies that are about to launch any new
major gadget will always pre-announce the sales figures they expect to get. Game console launches in particular feature
an advance prediction by their parent companies. Usually they're a very conservative estimate so that stockholders get
a nice little boost when the sales figures are greater than predicted. Ocassionally a company may overestimate the
number and produce too many consoles, like
Sony with the PSP.
With the Xbox 360 launch only a couple of weeks away, Microsoft is self-predicting that it'll sell 2.75-3 million Xbox
360 units within the first 90 days of the launch.
What we see here with this prediction is a cleverly disguised extension of the fear, uncertainty and doubt campaign that Microsoft wants to spread around the Xbox 360's launch. Those sales figures are reliant on Microsoft getting enough people out to pre-order and the number of people that go out and pre-order is directly related to the number of people that think the Xbox 360 is a "hot ticket". So it's natural for Microsoft to put a high number on the prediction — even if it means their stock price will suffer as a result. Notice how Microsoft is still refusing to tell us specifically how many Xbox 360s will be on the shelves. What we keep hearing is that there'll be "enough machines for a solid release and steady supply". Hold the phones! Doesn't "steady supply" mean no shortages?
[Thanks, bandersnatch and Brandon Shipe]
