Early PS3 shortages hurting more than just sales?

OMG U SONY H8RZ!

Just kidding. In all honesty, what you're saying seems to be the truth. I've been astonished to see just how effectively Nintendo has shut down Sony's post-launch buzz. I was expecting to see stories about how Sony has the hot but impossible to get item of the season, but instead that honor is going to Nintendo. Despite their having several times the supply, Nintendo has created a frenzy of demand that they can't keep up with.

FTW!!! Wiiiiiiiiiii

I don't think it'll hurt Sony in the long run. When they finally get enough consoles on the shelves, they could do a relaunch and generate buzz. Kind of like what Microsoft did in Japan. I think they relaunched the 360 three times.

the average consumer won't know the difference--or care for that matter.

It is an interesting phenomenon. When my non-gamer friends ask me about next gen consoles, the PS3 is always talked about last, with a bit of trepidation in their voices. They hear negative things, and that it's losing, hard, to the Wii. They think the shortages are due to insane crowds a la Tickle Me Elmo, and can't figure out why when the news hasn't been good.

Well, I suppose this runs counter to the theory that the PS3 will win the next round of the console wars on name recognition alone.

What I think hurts PS3's shortage problem more than anything else is the presence of fast-selling competition. When the 360 debuted, there was nothing in direct competition with it. If IT had the Wii to compete with, the 360 would have also looked bad. But since it didn't, no one took notice and the 360 was free to slowly gather steam.

The Wii's presence has allowed news outlets to have headlines like "Wii Trounces the PlayStation 3." Maybe it was really smart of Nintendo TO release its system after Sony's -- it created direct competition with the PS3 from Day 1 and further emphasizes that the Wii is outselling the PS3 "even though it came out later." This of course means nothing to us educated people, knowing if the PS3 had as many units available as the Wii, it more than likely would have sold equal amounts.

The PlayStation 3 will definitely have its work cut out for it to regain any momentum. As much as pro-Sony readers would like to think that this will all be a thing of the past in a year or so, it's still a concern and something that Sony will have to fight against in order to get to that point. Creating a strong impression from the get-go would have definitely convinced people that $600 was worth it for your system 'cause everyone is buying it, eBay profiteers or not. The fact that everyone is now hearing the name "Wii" instead of the PS3 does not bode well for Sony.

even though it may be that Nintendo is making Sony look worse off right now (if that's possible) the real problem is that Sony has one game at launch worthwhile while the rest lineup is crap for the price of entry compared to the competition. Public opinion may also be put off by the high price tag as i remember seeing a while ago an article that many probable PS3 owners initially thought the PS3 would be around 300. The price, shortage, lack of a respectable launch lineup, and post launch silence from Sony just add up.

What is interesting is that both the Wii and PS3 are hard if not impossible to find right now (obviously the PS3 has seen less than Big Foot, UFO's and Nessie combined). With that being said, will the media pick up on a story about how the only "next-gen" system available is the 360 as we get closer to Christmas?

Will little Johnny's parents go for the 360 or risk letting down their kids on December 25th?

I heard an uninformed friend tell me that the 360 is basically a computer while the PS3 is not.

I talked to Sony fans (not the crazy kind) up to the week of the PS3 launch. Pretty much all of them had no idea and when I told them about the insane price and laughable launch lineup most of them cringed.

So yeah... don't ignore the power of the ignorant masses, considering that they outnumber us.

Remember..."Perception is Reality" to a vast majority of people in this country.

Who cares.

Nintendo Ownes.

I work at a GameStop (though I'm one of the few informed associates anyone would ever meet) and the most common questions I get on the PS3 are "Do you have PS3s?" "When are you getting more PS3s?" "Why is the PS3 so bad?" "Why does the PS3 cost so much?"

so, yeah, about half of the questions i get lead to a Wii sale...

Well, the following headline just hit yahoo news:
"Wii outsells PlayStation 3 by more than double."

That's pretty mainstream coverage. So is that hstv graphics comparison thing. So is the New York Times. I was never really convinced until recently that Sony is in big trouble until now. This kind of coverage is far more damaging to that public perception than fanboy rants on gaming blogs.

I think Sony has a lot of leg work to do to convince the non-hardcore crowd that the PS3 is the way to go. This doesn't help. Sony should be pleased that the 360 hasn't dropped their price yet. Cause that's gonna sting ...

another day, another worthless post from Blake Snow.

IGNORE function please.

It's a strong possibility that because of PS3 shortages, most of the hype and early glamor of the PS3 would have worn off by the time Sony is shipping units at a steady pace,which would lead to average and even poor sales. But then again, perhaps not.

It probably doesn't help that nobody actually wants Bluray out of the HD movies crowd, as well as the fact that the majority of people could care less about both HD disk formats in the first place.

It seems that in trying to float Bluray on the PS3, they turned the PS3 into a sinking ship. A multi-billion dollar sinking ship they need to stay afloat themselves.

Ahoy!

Okay B.A.M.N. what positive news is there about the PS3 that we should know about today?

- Is it that because Sony didn't sell any because of shortages that they didn't lose more money today?

- Is it the fact that their release was a huge success in that they sold out all their units (Whopping 197K units)?

Please tell me what the positives are for Sony and the PS3 right now.

Uh, what shortage? 3 Wal-Mart stores and a Target near me all have PS3 units in stock. No one's buying the POS. That is what's hurting Sony.

Quite frankly, if you don't know about the PS3 shortages then you probably aren't going to be willing to spend $700+ for the system, an extra controller, and a game or two. The guy who say "I just read that the Wii is killing the PS3 on yahoo yesterday...what's going on there?" is not gonna spend that kind of money for a console.

I can't figure out why ANYONE would spend that much on a console, but that's a whole other topic...

I also kind of noticed that when sone news outlets were covering the ps3 lines, they also didn't tend to blame the lines on a shortage, thus portraying the ps3 as just a really awesome hot holiday item. Goes both ways?

Well, it's more than just a shortage that's hurting Sony...

It's the bad press
It's the price
It's blu-ray
It's the competition
It's the lack of a killer app (game)

Shortage or not, I don't know anyone who wants to buy one-- mostly because of the cost. Perhaps the shortage is the best thing that has happened to Sony. If there weren't a shortage and it didn't sell well, I would think that would be worse. At least with a shortage, it appears that it's hard to find because everyone wants one.

In the short term, sales will be great. It'll be far most interesting what sales will be like by say next July or August.

I stood in line today to get the Wii along with 30+ people at a GaneStop and not one person came in and asked about the PS3. Talking to the other parents and all told me they heard the PS3 was having way too many problems and the price was outrageous. Half said they have 360 and none said they were getting a PS3.

I think it's poor PR on Sony's behalf.

Shortages of PS3s? Please... I was at my EB Games this morning, and there was an actual line for SPECULATION that Nintendo Wiis would be available. 20+ people wanting Wii, 1 person wanting a PS3... and only 2 PS3s showed up. The other PS3 was sold to a lady just wanting the new Sony for her son, because she wanted to buy a brand name she heard of before.

I'm sure the PS3 will sell better after the Christmas rush. This Christmas just happens to be about the Wii, because people can afford it. Now, if the product was there, then Wii'd be in business.

In response to the article and post#12:

Post 12. Although I agree with your comments and the similar comments of the prior posts, I take offense to you calling those not actively involved in the matters of the gaming world the "ignorant masses". It is a choice for us to care about what is written on this blog and other sites and is is also a choice for us to actively search for information on gaming (Xbox 360, Wii, PS3, "next gen gaming", etc.) Being such, it is a choice not every person has to make. This does not make them ignorant. Think of what interests you are not pursuing. Does the select group of people that decided that Pluto was no longer a planet have a right to call you a part of the "ignorant masses who wouldn't know that Pluto is not suitable to be a planet by current terms"? This is not to incite you or attack you, as I am as interested in how this "next-gen war" will play out as you are, I just wanted to make that point on how you label other people.

Overall article: I guess I would be labeled as an Xbox fanboy. I have not bought the 360 yet, however, once GTA 4 and Halo 3 come out, I am buying the 360, the two games and Gears of War, Madden whatever, and Rainbow Six Vegas. Needless to say, I have a vested interest in Microsoft winning this "war". I am glad that Sony will have to work hard to win the average consumers dollar. Nobody likes a overwhelming favorite to reign ad nauseum (this coming from a diehard Yankee fan...remember the good times!). A change of pace with Microsoft and Nintendo at the pole position will be good for the gaming industry in my opinion. I just hope the 360 sells well, but I have an inkling that I am one of millions waiting for Halo 3 before dumping the big black box, so expect to see the 360 surge ahead just as much as the PS3 could when the supplies get straightened out. Bill Gates may have been clairvoyant when he stated that the PS3 would run straight into Halo 3. As we see, it's not at the PS3's launch, but just when we expect the PS3 to hit it's stride.

And as a true 360 fan would say, 360 FTW!!!

P.S. R.I.P Arrested Development and watch Scrubs on NBC on Thursdays at 9!

@ #25

Let me introduce you to the word, "Ignorant".

ig·no·rant /ˈɪgnərənt/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[ig-ner-uhnt]

–adjective
1. lacking in knowledge or training; unlearned: an ignorant man.
2. lacking knowledge or information as to a particular subject or fact: ignorant of quantum physics.
3. uninformed; unaware.
4. due to or showing lack of knowledge or training: an ignorant statement.


Everyone that doesn't know or is unaware IS IGNORANT. Whether they choose or not...either way they are ignorant.

So here's to your ignorance on the word ignorant.

#25.

It is just a definition. You can also use bewildered herd if that strikes your fancy. I personally like ignorant masses, it just has the ring to it.

Also due to the fact that bewildered herd means more then just being a clueless consumer, but that is another story.

Moral of the story: Do some product research and cross evaulate thus products and make a informed buying decision. I know it involves, you know, work, but you can save yourself alot of money in the long run.

I love Scrubs.

#25, YANKEES FTW!

i love scrubs too... they recently began playing it on Comedy central and I think its harlarious.

About the article, before either system launched Nintendo's president was making it sound like it would be no problem finding Wii and, since thats the system I really want, I was siked. But now they are harder to find then WMD's in Iraq. Damnit, if only the PS3 had taken off I might be playing a Wii right now and thats all I really give a hist about.

I am loving my X360... Gears online is just too hot to resist. And it has all the best games (etc).

However... Nothing would bring me greater pleasure than to See Nintendo Triumph over Sony (and MS, they can handle it) and be back on top.

And to kill all of Sony's post buzz (post launch BULL more like) with a simple word "Wii" is music to my ears.

It may sound extreme but that's exactly the kind of feeling Sony has caused in non-PS-Fanboys and their arrogance and BS had to end one day. Now the Wii60 combo is here to deal the death blow.

As all the ardent Sony fans who wouldn't dare look at another system (in case it proved everyone else wrong) I wonder what they are going to do in the future? Just stop playing games? Because if/when the PS3 flops there won't be a forth and you will either have to stop being blindly loyal to an electronics company (and grab an MS, NIN or even Apple by then) console or STFU and go outside while we all game.

Thanks and goodnight!

Everyone please Re Read Matts post. Its hilarious on so many levels. I love the way he closes his statement.

Matt how do you answer those questions?

Matt come out of your Wii fanboy closet.

You are part of the problem Matt.

Why the Disney pic?

Public perception is like being the last to know. Of course that pertains to all Sony fanboys.

Blake, how long do you expect the headline to be? Headlines are there to grab your attention.

at the end of the article it reads that Sony is having problems producing any more (which to me reads they sold everything they made) but makes no claim for nintendo.

if anything while the article leads that the PS3 is doing poorly the article leads that the Wii is doing poorly

Sony came out with less than 200,000 consoles.

Last year at this time, a lot of people were claiming that Microsoft was purposely holding back 360s to pump up the interest.

Does anyone think that about Sony this year? Or was that just last year's ignorant hypothesis?

I think alot of people are forgetting a few large things. Namely: Gran Turismo, Tekken, and Final Fantasy. Those 3 game franchises alone will necessitate that any mildly dedicated gamer would almost necessarily need to buy a PS3. This is how the Xbox got ALOT of its sales with the necessary Halo title in your library.

I for one am waiting until some kinks are worked out and a game that is worth playing comes out.

Gears of War is better than any other game experience you can find right now. Xbox has found another winner, they are not going anywhere.

I think the shortage will be damaging in another way, the current price is clearly in the early adopter price range, once the early buzz has worn off how long with an early adopter be interested??

Early adopters are more willing to put up with a lack of games and bugs in the system but in 6 months time they are more likely to make an informed choice rather than a impusle must have one

I think the public perception theory is probably right. Lots of stories do talk about the PS3 shortages, but not early enough in the piece.

Sony has it rough. They are being hit hard on all sides, not just from PS3 and Blu Ray competitors, but from other sectors as well. I have been looking at HDTV's for a while now and two brands keep grabbing my attention. Toshiba and Samsung. Sony TV's are nice, but I don't think they are worth the price premium. Prices are dropping for digital camera media, making their memory sticks less competitive, and their competition in every market that Sony has product is strong. The Vaio computers, although they may be pretty to look at, aren't any more functional than computers you can buy from other vendors. All they are is an expensive fashion statement and they feel flimsy and fragile when handled. I visit the Sony Style store in my local mall when I am there, and I have never seen more than one other customer in the store apart from myself, and they have 5 people on staff there all the time. Do they need 5 people to look after the place when there are never more than 2 people in the store at a time?? I think they are too big and they are losing focus on what is important.

Perhaps it depends where you live, but I know here you can go to pretty much any store and they're bound to have at LEAST one in stock in the back collecting dust. As someone stated earlier, it's no one buying the POS, not shortages.

It's quite interesting to see that people think the PS3 has lots of problems and I believe the one that bothers people the most if the price tag. $500-600 may be out of reach for some people out there, however you are paying for what you get. Also the most important thing is that pick a console depends on what games you like to play. People who enjoy GT, MGS and DMC would pick the PS3 over the other two consoles on the market.

Something is bad not because it's really bad, just because you can't get it that makes it bad.

There are extra PS3's at some stores near me as well. I'm not sure which version, but they definitely had some last weekend when I went to gamestop to try and get a Wii. They had already sold their Wii's of course, and asked if I'd like a PS3 instead. I told em no cause it's not worth the price yet, and headed over to Toys R Us where they had about 5 Wii's left over from the morning shipment, and 1 PS3 from a few days ago.

This all took place last Sunday and I'm in Omaha BTW.

17. Azereal:
"It seems that in trying to float Bluray on the PS3, they turned the PS3 into a sinking ship. A multi-billion dollar sinking ship they need to stay afloat themselves."


let me extend your metaphor a bit...

Sony is the sinking cruise ship, Playstation 3 is the life boat that's going to save everyone on the ship. But then someone goes "Let me put these pianos in the life rafts!" Everyone stares at him. "Why the hell would we need a piano in a life raft?" others cry. "Why, to hear wonderful music while we are escaping our peril!"
Others try to shout him down. "Those of us without a pianist in our raft will have no use for this!" "The pianos takes up so much room, without them we could save 200 lives!" and "This is almost as crazy as putting a blu-ray player in a videogame console!"
But the man with the piano persists, asserting that "Pianos are absolutely necessary for this generation of life raft!" He calls to his following of loyal robots, who come to his side and repeat his words like a chant, eventually drowning out the voices of sanity.
So, they push the pianos into the life rafts. And they immediately begin to sink, regardless of the quality of the music. A few robots are lucky enough to keep their raft afloat, and their piano players playing. They survey the sinking ship, now half underwater, the broken life rafts that came without oars, the dead pianists floating by and they come to the conclusion, "What the hell is everyone complaining about?! Okay, so the advantage of having a piano isn't apparent right now, but wait until a year from now and you'll see! All you whining fanboys are just jealous because I have this awesome life raft with a piano in it!"


So, what did we learn from this story?

>> Just read this mainstream headline from Yahoo! News
>> that makes no mention of PS3 shortages: "Wii
>> trounces PlayStation 3 in US sales in November."

Inaccuracies and the media go hand-in-hand. It's hard to say if this is just an example of an uninformed journalist making an honest mistake or if it's a blatant example of New York Times style bias. It may not be bias as fanboysism is probably not as widespread as we think it is.


>> One colleague, just today, asked while offering
>> his comprehension of the situation: "Tell me about
>> this Nintendo Wii? All I know is that Sony's
>> machine is not doing well and Nintendo's is
>> doing great."

How does he define "not doing well"? Almost every time I see a mention of the PS3 in the media it has something to do with the shortage or the insane prices they are getting on ebay. That implies that the thing is in big demand, at least when compared to the supply.

What's hurting the PS3 is the sensationalist media (Hi Joystiq!) and sheep-like mobs of pseudo intellectuals on the internet (Hi Joystiq posters!).

"Inaccuracies and the media go hand-in-hand. It's hard to say if this is just an example of an uninformed journalist making an honest mistake or if it's a blatant example of New York Times style bias. It may not be bias as fanboysism is probably not as widespread as we think it is."

How is that a mistake?

The Wii IS trouncing the PS3. I don't care if it's because the PS3 causes miscarriages, it costs $3000, or if because it's just simply not available. Point is, so far the Wii has sold 3x as many machine as Sony. This is a true and undeniable fact.

This is bad news for Sony. The AVERAGE consumer doesn't know that there's shortages, they just know that the Wii is selling better than the PS3. The Wii must therefore be better. And with the wii being 1/2 the price of the PS3, why buy a PS3?