Sony hopes to resolve PS3 "shortages" by May
by Blake Snow 
{ Feb 28th 2007 at 11:25AM }
Apparently all the PS3s you see in stock don't really exist. Perhaps they're just empty display boxes, or Sony is just really quick to replace huge piles of the console; they sell out fast and get restocked even faster. But don't worry, you should be able to find a PS3 in a few months, says Sony chief executive Jack Tretton. "April or May is when we feel like we're going to catch up to demand and have product fully in stock across North America and stay there."Tretton continued by telling Reuters that the console was still out of stock in "some areas" and that the, ahem, shortages were "a testament to the fact that we've been able to manufacture and ship units on a greater pace than any previous console." Since we seemingly live in make-believe land, let's pretend Sony didn't even say this.
[Thanks, Dolla Dolla]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Scott Jon Siegel @ Feb 28th 2007 11:28AM
The shortage in Kingston, NY:
http://flickr.com/photos/numberless/405399253/
Saneless @ Feb 28th 2007 11:31AM
Is this retard still offering 1200 per machine? Wow, WTF is going on at Sony? I think they should check their water supply.. no one there is making any sense.
I've seen a PS3 at every single store I've ever been to that sells systems. I've never seen a Wii in my life
CC @ Feb 28th 2007 11:31AM
Assuming they're talking about Europe shortages, they are right.
SurfMurph @ Feb 28th 2007 11:31AM
When it becomes this easy to ridicule something or someone, its just not fun anymore.
samfish @ Feb 28th 2007 11:31AM
Hmm...North east Ohio must but stuck in a space-time vortex that has us living in the future while operating in the past, because everywhere I go, I see lots of PS3s.
By May, you say? I wonder if my birthday has come and gone yet.
...I also wonder how long it'll be before the anti-Nintendo Brigade comes to crap on this thread, too.
Joemama @ Feb 28th 2007 11:32AM
Dude, get a fucking life already.
JodyAnthony @ Feb 28th 2007 11:32AM
What could I say that Nelson Muntz hasn't said hundreds of times
kris @ Feb 28th 2007 11:33AM
we have a cracking amount of shortage in the UK. Practically zero in fact!!
On another note though, is joystiq really turning into a hate factory for the ps3. I'm a bit of a nintendo/xbox boy myself but i have found that lately i have actually start to root for the ps3 which feels frankly strange....
Jon-Angelo @ Feb 28th 2007 11:33AM
I have to say, even though I'm not a Sony fan (I own all three systems), it seems like Joystiq is turning into a Wii360 fansite.
Or maybe there just isn't any good news coming out of Sony these days.
KVN @ Feb 28th 2007 11:33AM
Sony and there people really need to shut up.It's like every time they talk nothing but S**t comes out.It's like watch those espn news ads.
Myke @ Feb 28th 2007 11:34AM
As much as I USED to enjoy these Sony guys sticking thier foot in thier collective mouths, this is just getting old now. It was funny the first 10 times but now it's just like some random fanboy yelling "Dur, PS3 is outselling every other console ever made EVAR!!!". It's just clearly not true so it's not even worth spending time to listen to it anymore. Come get me when there are several AAA first and third party titles out for ALL the machines and then maybe I'll start caring what analysts and jacka$$ company big-wigs say.
Jess @ Feb 28th 2007 11:35AM
I live in toronto and i can't find any in my local futureshop/bestbuy. There is some truth to this...
Game Artist @ Feb 28th 2007 11:37AM
I haven't been anywhere in almost a month that didn't have a pile of ps3's
JJC @ Feb 28th 2007 11:38AM
i love sony products. always have. But does this guy shop at macys for a ps3? because every single electronics store past christmas has had a ps3 in stock and in view, or atleast every time ive been there. what a fucking quack.
hollywooda @ Feb 28th 2007 11:39AM
Havent Sony already put out a comment saying the reason there are so many PS3's on shelves is because they have made constant stock??.... so why should we care if more are coming in may!!??... the fcuking shelves are already full of the useless things!???... hahahaha ohh sony u twats!
Joemama @ Feb 28th 2007 11:40AM
@12: Truth has never been a matter of concern for Blakey-boy or the other pathetic posters to joystiq, who regularly resort to all manner of negative spin, and just making shit up, just so they can titter like little school girls at the PS3 and Sony.
kris @ Feb 28th 2007 11:44AM
does anyone know what the situation is in Japan? Seriously, I'm just curious. Don't all please start throwing hissy fits....
sheppy @ Feb 28th 2007 11:42AM
In my area, PS3 sells consistantly. While you may find a store out of stock, it's just a simple matter of driving further down the strip to find a console. So they are selling out, just not to an epidemic standard. I've also bought and shipped consoles to old friends who cannot find them in their area of the country so once again...
In other news, I finally started finding Wii controllers... (Wii consoles are in the same status as PS3 around here. Findable, but expect to hit a couple stores)
REUYL @ Feb 28th 2007 11:43AM
Jack Tretton still owes me over $9600.
t3nguman @ Feb 28th 2007 11:46AM
I live in Sacramento, CA and for the past 3 weeks I have gone to 2 different Bestbuy's, 2 Circuit City's, 1 Toys R Us, 3 Target's and a Fry's Electronics and EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE STORES had AT LEAST 5 PS3s in stock (I have been on the hunt for a Wii if you were wondering why I have been going to these stores for 3 weeks). The funny thing is, I'm a total Sony fanboy but I'm smart enough to realize how much they fucked up on the PS3.
Agent MOO @ Feb 28th 2007 11:45AM
Resolve the issues how? Burn the unsold stock in a bonfire?
introvert @ Feb 28th 2007 11:46AM
Sony is following the lead of the Bush administration: deny what's really going on and just repeat your BS lines over and over until someone believes them.
Dolla Dolla @ Feb 28th 2007 11:46AM
@sheppy
You could be turning a nice 50-100 dollar profit on each of those Wii's your finding if you flip them on ebay. I'm trying to get my cousin to find me one in Alabama, and he can't.
jsn @ Feb 28th 2007 11:49AM
C'mon people, Joystiq posts every stupid thing Microsoft or Nintendo does or says too, it's not like they're singling out Sony. It just shows that Sony is doing and saying more stupid stuff right now than the other two combined. Don't feel sorry for them when they've brought it on themselves. They hyped their product to all ends, dissed the competition and they're now getting what they've earned.
skyrous @ Feb 28th 2007 11:51AM
Anyone else get the impression that the Sony guys are reading from a script that was written 6 months ago?
makattack @ Feb 28th 2007 11:56AM
I haven't seen a PS3 yet at any of the following local retailers:
William Sonoma
Crate & Barrel
Kitchen Etc
Bed Bath & Beyond
Grilling season is coming up, I needs me one o'dem fancy black 'lectric grills.
bakunin @ Feb 28th 2007 11:51AM
Ah, Joemama, come on, a personal attack on Joystiq and its posters? And since you have such irrefutable proof that Joystiq makes stuff up and always puts negative spin on PS3 and Sony, prove it! The fact is that Sony screwed up, and Joystiq is not anti-Sony for merely pointing out their dumb moves. They do the same for M$ and the big N.
erac3rx @ Feb 28th 2007 11:51AM
Relax people. With the large number of solid releases coming in March (MotorStorm, Amored Core 4, Oblivion, Rainbow Six Vegas, Virtua Tennis 3, Def Jam Icon, NBA Street Home court, etc. etc..) combined with the continued growth of BluRay as a format, Sony is definitely going to start selling more PS3s. Having them available when people go to buy them is a good thing.
Realistically, I think MotorStorm is absolutely going to sell some systems once the final USA rev gets reviewed. And the game shortage will be largely alleviated by the end of March as a result of all the aforementioned games being released. Now you're just paying $100 extra to get BluRay and some solid exclusives in addition to the same stream of cross-platform titles that 360 gets...
HotShotX @ Feb 28th 2007 11:55AM
I'm seriously confused at this point...I'm beginning to think someone his feeding Sony's top players false numbers regarding the PS3...
...and were talking "Enron" magnitude at this point in the game.
~HotShotX
Dave @ Feb 28th 2007 11:52AM
Hey, Joystiq didn't make this announcement--Sony did. Is Joystiq supposed to ignore the fact that these things are everywhere? We've been talking about it for months--there is no shortage. Let's all close our eyes and just pretend everything Sony says is accurate.
JJC @ Feb 28th 2007 11:52AM
sheppy what part of the country do you live in? no sarcasam, just actually curious. there must be a lot of gamers where you live that have a lot of money. not so much here in upstate NY. i havent seen anyone buy one when ive been in an electronics store. i only know of one person that has one in my area besides myself. i dont think they are selling like crazy. i think they will when the price goes down and the next wave of BIG games come out (not 360 ports or motorstorm).
Virtua Fanboy @ Feb 28th 2007 11:54AM
I've seen plenty of them as well.
that guy @ Feb 28th 2007 11:55AM
Jess, I don't know what area of Toronto you're in, but I can honestly say that every game-selling store I've been to in the past month has had one, if not several, PS3s in stock (I obviously live in Toronto as well).
A few of my friends have finally managed to find Wiis after months of searching, but they're still a very hard find.
sheppy @ Feb 28th 2007 11:55AM
@Dolla Dolla
I contemplated that. But recently, Ebay has been filled with a bunch of liars or just downright shady people. I sold a few things over the christmas season and of the 12 items, half were apparently lost in the mail (I do delivery confirmation so I outscarted those scammers), another one was apparently shipped defective but once I requested a return of the item to confirm it was defective, they immediately backed up saying "well, it works half the time... that's what I get for buying used," and one even claimed the item was something that it wasn't. Recently, I sold some artwork, did cover art for a local band, and have three freelance 3D contracts out. I'm swimming in extra money (actually, it's all going towards a tablet PC of the $4000 calibur) so the headaches of dealing with shady Ebayers doesn't seem worth the $50-$100 chicken feed.
Zac @ Feb 28th 2007 11:56AM
These PS3's stacking up on store shelves has to be a regional thing. I live in the capital city of one of the largest states in the US and there is a definite shortage here.
Man-E-Faces @ Feb 28th 2007 11:57AM
Hey #1, I know that Target all too well. They've had PS3's consistently since January. I don't think I have gone in there once without there being PS3's.
sheppy @ Feb 28th 2007 11:57AM
I live in the Champaign-Urbana area of Illinois.
BPM @ Feb 28th 2007 11:59AM
I can't laugh at this. This is just too pathetic. Like kicking a dead puppy.
It's not funny anymore. Sony execs, for your own sake, stop speaking to the public. Or at least, stop LYING to the public.
joemama @ Feb 28th 2007 12:04PM
@27: Easy enough to prove Snow-job and others routinely make shit up - just read their posts. He insinuates Tretton is lying when he says there are shortages in some areas, yet other posters verify this. So we're supposed to take Snow-job's word for it? This might be easier if his post history didn't so obviously scream Wii-fanboy-Sony-hater. Then we've got Andrew Yoon insisting that the latest firmware is broken - yet it's still weeks away from release!
Pathetic.
theGreenGrunt @ Feb 28th 2007 12:04PM
In case it hasnt been said yet in this thread.
Joystiq reports news.
Therefore Joystiq obviously hates (insert console
manuf. here).
Dapper Dan @ Feb 28th 2007 12:04PM
@sheppy
how could you have such an intelligent post on nintendo stocks yesterday, but you cannot spell consistently correctly?
=)
Kye @ Feb 28th 2007 12:05PM
"April or May is when we feel like we're going to catch up to demand and have product fully in stock across North America and stay there."
What's he talking about? The product is already staying in stock. No-one is buying any.
sheppy @ Feb 28th 2007 12:06PM
@Dapper Dan
Went to bed at five (AM) last night working on a freelance thing, woke up at 7 this morning to get to work. The fact that I can type at all is considered a caffeine induced miracle.
Dolla Dolla @ Feb 28th 2007 12:09PM
@sheppy
Yeah, I hear ya. I'm already about to place a claim in cause I ordered a 4gb pro duo for my PSP and haven't received it. It's been over 4 weeks =( Makes me sad. Ebay is about to be in trouble with the IRS, anyway:
http://www.betanews.com/article/IRS_Wants_Access_to_eBay_Seller_Data/1172519585
If I owned stock, I'd consider selling soon.
8dot3 @ Feb 28th 2007 12:10PM
They were in stock at Target last night. No Wiis though.
NoK @ Feb 28th 2007 6:31PM
To #1... Ha that's funny, the stores in Newburgh, Middletown, and Poughkeepsie, NY all have PS3's.
Poisoned Al @ Feb 28th 2007 12:12PM
While I don't normally go into PS3 bashing, I have to say "STFU Sony! Nobody believes you!"
Allen Straith @ Mar 1st 2007 1:13AM
Um, maybe they mean shortages small chains....because my Wal-Mart hasn't sold out of PS3's for a while....
And at my local Rhino, even though Nintendo keeps up with shipments every week, they continue to sell out in hours. The PS3's aren't moving.....
James @ Feb 28th 2007 12:16PM
Shortage does not = "impossible to buy"
In the Los Angeles area the PS3 will consistently sell out in most retailers (like Best Buy). Then a new shipment will come in and over the next few days it will gradually sell out. So, depending, you may walk in to find the PS3 in stock or you may walk in to find it is sold out. In retail you want a constant stock that consistently sells, not to "sell out" and possibly lose sales before you restock.
I can walk into any store in the country and have a 99.9% chance of finding an Xbox 360. PS3 is more like 80% or something (depending on what area of the country you live in). Wii < 50%. The latter two are various stages of "shortage".
People's understanding of statistics and how anecdotal evidence does not refute them is pathetic.
Matt @ Feb 28th 2007 12:22PM
Oh my god. If every store around me has 20 of these things stacked up and some regions have "shortages" then obviously Sony has problems in every department. Like distribution?
Seriously, you have to walk around piles of crap just to get into Best Buy