Microsoft marketer John Porcaro responds vigorously to blogger "Shaded" who
wrote that he
believed it "ignorant or insincere" for Microsoft to continue to promote the Xbox 360 even as launch quantities were
known to be very limited. He then made a request:
"My request is simple: Take off the front page advertisements, turn off the mass marketing emails and the TV advertisements until demand is more in line with supply. It is a matter of humility for Microsoft and respect for their customers."
We've heard forms of this request from readers here on Joystiq as well. Porcaro puts together a response where he lays out the marketing challenges in detail that should help readers increase their understanding of Microsoft's dilemma. It's a must-read for haters and partisans alike.
Several of his points support our oft-voiced theory that the Xbox 360 shortage is healthy and even desirable for marketing purposes, unfortunate as that may be for the early adopter crowd. Porcaro writes, "launching with too few units" can result in "too much demand." Exactly our point when we wrote about Xbox 360 shortages being created for marketing purposes. A product launch shortage is a demand driver in the short run, and—hardcore fanboys be damned—a necessary evil in generating demand amongst the broader market that Microsoft must capture in order to compete against the PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Revolution.
