PS3 UK launch debacle.

[slade]

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/26261/Record-breaking-165000-PS3s-sold-at-UK-launch

Record-breaking 165,000 PS3s sold at UK launch
18:45, Mar 26th 2007 by Neil Long
New format becomes fastest-selling home console ever over its debut weekend.
ChartTrack has confirmed that 165,000 PS3 units were sold during the console's launch weekend.

The figure is three quarters of the total 220,000 UK launch stock for day one, and makes PS3 second only to PSP in the overall launch weekend sales stakes. The Sony handheld shifted 185,000 in its opening weekend back in September 2005.

PS3’s record-breaking debut for a home console comfortably beats the previous top seller Nintendo Wii, which sold 105,000 after its frantic launch weekend in December last year. Fellow format rival Xbox 360 racked up an estimated 70,000 at launch in December 2005.

The figure also means that Sony has not sold all of its opening weekend stock, something the platform holder claims is part of its overall strategy at retail.

Well?

[Mochan]

Man those Bravias sure did the trick!

[Gamer88]

Propaganda,

the UK government is obviously in league with Sony and conspiring against Microsoft.

It was only a matter of time.

[thelastword]

Funny how dirty tactics will just prove useless in an informed age. At the french launch, MS had a boat which marked XBOX LOVES YOU sailing to and fro in the general launch area, all in an attempt to botch the PS3 launch. I think MS is doing themselves more harm than good with their ill strategies.

Link (http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/date/03242007/index.html)

[Gamer From '78]

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/26261/Record-breaking-165000-PS3s-sold-at-UK-launch

Well?

It sold 75% of the initial stock and it took 3 days to do it. While it's all well and good that is was the best launch sales yet, it doesn't change the fact that the Wii SOLD OUT and the PS2 SOLD OUT within hours of release. The article also doesn't take in account that the Xbox 360 SOLD OUT as well with allocated launch units.

It's real easy to say "Hey, we sold X amount of PS3's which is the bestest numbers evar" but neglect to mention that you didn't SELL OUT or that previous launches were supply constrained.

Bottom line: PS2's were in short supply and hot demand for nearly six months worldwide after launch. PS3's are sitting on shelves AT launch.

The greatest & most powerful system ever....and they can't even move their launch units which was around a piddly quarter million. Pffft. :rolleyes:

[Fivespot]

I disagree '78. The fact that PS3's are on shelfs in the UK while selling at a faster pace than Wii's or 360's is a credit to Sony for having enough product to meet demands.

You really can't make this into a bad thing just because they still have products sitting on shelves.

[Gamer From '78]

I disagree '78. The fact that PS3's are on shelfs in the UK while selling at a faster pace than Wii's or 360's is a credit to Sony for having enough product to meet demands.

You really can't make this into a bad thing just because they still have products sitting on shelves.

Look at it like this:

PS2 launches in the UK. It ships a total of 120,000 units at launch. They all sell out and there are no new supplies to refresh stock. The PS2 ony sold 120,000 then but COULD have sold more had there been additional stock for retailers to sell.

PS3 shipped more units to retail for launch than the PS2. It didn't sell out. Is there any way to know-with the knowledge that not as many PS2's were available at launch-that it WOULDN'T have sold as many units as the PS3 had units been available for sale?

That's my point. The Wii and Xbox 360 only sold those numbers because that is what was available. Nothing else. Do you think if 220,000 Wii's were available at launch that any of them would have been left?

Sony is really grasping at straws. But I don't need to say it. One just needs to look at where the game developers are going and the current state of PS3 exclusives jumping ship to know what is going on in the gaming world.

[Gadfly2317]

I disagree '78. The fact that PS3's are on shelfs in the UK while selling at a faster pace than Wii's or 360's is a credit to Sony for having enough product to meet demands.

You really can't make this into a bad thing just because they still have products sitting on shelves.

Wii and 360 sold every unit they had available in their global launches; Ps3 saved up units for a launch but couldn't sell them all. I don't know yet if this actually is a good or bad thing for Sony, but I am certain it's not yet an indicator of whether the Ps3 will do better or worse than the competition in the UK.

[Mochan]

They say its "part of their strategy." Whatever that strategy is. Maybe they don't want to frustrate their buyers who can't find a system to buy, LOL.

[slade]

They really are damned if they do and damned if they don't. If there had been shortages like there were at the N. American and Japanese launches, Gamer would be crying about how Sony couldn't meet demand. Now that they do meet demand, Gamer is crying about how they didn't sell out.

Fact of the matter is Sony provided more consoles then any other manufacturer has at their launch. They met their shipment goals. How the product does after this is up in the air, but then again, since some of you can comment on how bad Sony is doing in Euroland without any concrete sales figures available, at least now you can do it when there are concrete sales figures available.

[ilnadmy]

It's real easy to say "Hey, we sold X amount of PS3's which is the bestest numbers evar" but neglect to mention that you didn't SELL OUT or that previous launches were supply constrained.

Wow...my head...so much doublethink in that one phrase. In the beginning of the sentence you are not selling out when you don't sell all your stock, and in the second part of the sentence you are supply constrained when you do sell out all your stock.

Hey '78, how's Big Brother doing? Still hanging out with O'Brien in Room 101?

[Mochan]

They really are damned if they do and damned if they don't. If there had been shortages like there were at the N. American and Japanese launches, Gamer would be crying about how Sony couldn't meet demand. Now that they do meet demand, Gamer is crying about how they didn't sell out.


Well this is Gamer we're talking about. Sony can't win with Gamer78 right now even if they gave him a million bucks and ten hot teenage virgins to do with as he pleases.

[ilnadmy]

Yeah, the million bucks would be a trick by Sony to unload PS3s, and the virgins weren't sold out because they're still "on the shelf" so to speak.

[Gamer From '78]

They really are damned if they do and damned if they don't. If there had been shortages like there were at the N. American and Japanese launches, Gamer would be crying about how Sony couldn't meet demand. Now that they do meet demand, Gamer is crying about how they didn't sell out.

Fact of the matter is Sony provided more consoles then any other manufacturer has at their launch. They met their shipment goals. How the product does after this is up in the air, but then again, since some of you can comment on how bad Sony is doing in Euroland without any concrete sales figures available, at least now you can do it when there are concrete sales figures available.

What North American and Japanese shortages Slade? Widely reported, PS3's were in stock at most major retailers across the US and Japan with the exception of a one week period at best immediately around Christmas.

The "concrete" sales figures you provided show that Sony was unable to sell out of their uber-console on it's launch weekend. That's just sad.

[Gamer From '78]

Wow...my head...so much doublethink in that one phrase. In the beginning of the sentence you are not selling out when you don't sell all your stock, and in the second part of the sentence you are supply constrained when you do sell out all your stock.

Hey '78, how's Big Brother doing? Still hanging out with O'Brien in Room 101?

No "doublethink" in that sentence Ilnadmy. Read it again. Sony started off saying that if you could find a PS3 in a retail store, Jackie-boy would give you $1,200 or whatever for it. EGM called his bluff and found PS3's IN STOCK in 9 stores. Sony quickly shifts gears and now claims that consumers just can't buy PS3's fast enough. :rolleyes:

You made my point clear yourself in the quote.

You are not selling out when you don't sell all of your stock. This is correct.

Supply constrained referred to the Wii and Xbox 360 which had much smaller launch supplies than the PS3 and sold out. My point is that if there were more Wii's and 360's available, their launch numbers would have been higher.

[Gamer From '78]

Well this is Gamer we're talking about. Sony can't win with Gamer78 right now even if they gave him a million bucks and ten hot teenage virgins to do with as he pleases.

It has nothing to do with Sony "winning" with me. My PSP and PS2 give me plenty of gaming satisfaction. So does playing my old PSX games as well.

What would make me happy with the PS3 right now?

1) $100 price drop. $600 is an outrageous asking price. Especially given that the games have shown no superiority over 360 games.

2) $50 price drop on the 20-gig model and make it available again. 20-gig models are impossible to find and it looks as if the plan to phase it out quickly is in full effect if the single-SKU European launch is any indicator.

3) Admit you F'd up and put force feedback in the Sixaxis. Gamers want it. Kojima wants it. Everyone else HAS it.

[ilnadmy]

I'm not talking about what Sony said, I'm talking about what you said. Fact is, when company X doesn't sell all its stock, it's "supply constrained" if you don't like company X, and it's "selling like hotcakes" if you happen to like company X. That's doublethink, and you are a freaking genius in its implementation.

[Gamer From '78]

I'm not talking about what Sony said, I'm talking about what you said. Fact is, when company X doesn't sell all its stock, it's "supply constrained" if you don't like company X, and it's "selling like hotcakes" if you happen to like company X. That's doublethink, and you are a freaking genius in its implementation.

You are messing it all up dude. Here is what you quoted from MY post.

"It's real easy to say "Hey, we sold X amount of PS3's which is the bestest numbers evar" but neglect to mention that you didn't SELL OUT or that previous launches were supply constrained."

Here are the facts and a clarification since you are mis-reading the damn thing!

1) The sales numbers of what sold for the UK launch of PS3 is only 75% of what was shipped to retail. Therefore, they didn't sell out. Following me?

2) The article suggests that it is the fastest selling system launch ever. Now...

3) I was referring to the PS2 launch which DIDN'T have enough systems to meet demand. Therefore, it sold out due to a lack of systems. Meaning...

4) Isn't it ENTIRELY POSSIBLE that PS2, Xbox 360, Wii or any OTHER system could have sold as many units as the PS3 had THAT MANY been available?

By previous launches (at the end of the sentence you quoted), I was referring to OTHER systems that were released prior to the PS3. I hope this clears it all up for you. If not, Gadfly understands what I am saying.

[PapaSmurf]

Gamer from 78 I agree with you, but it still doesn't change the bottom line. It was the fastest selling launch ever. There it is in black and white. Sure maybe the Wii, PS2, and 360 may have sold more they had more stock, but on the other hand they may not have. That's something we'll never know. What we do know is that the PS3 is the fastest selling console in Euro ever because Sony was able to get the shipments out. That is a fact.

[Gamer From '78]

Gamer from 78 I agree with you, but it still doesn't change the bottom line. It was the fastest selling launch ever. There it is in black and white. Sure maybe the Wii, PS2, and 360 may have sold more they had more stock, but on the other hand they may not have. That's something we'll never know. What we do know is that the PS3 is the fastest selling console in Euro ever because Sony was able to get the shipments out. That is a fact.

Not the fasting selling console in Europe...Just the United Kingdom. In other countries, sales have tanked ie France.

[Mochan]

No, it's the fastest selling in Europe, just because it didn't sell well in France doesn't remove the fact that it sold the fastest in UK, and the UK is part of Europe. Now if another console sold faster in France or any other part of Europe, you'd be correct.

[folken001]

No, it's the fastest selling in Europe, just because it didn't sell well in France doesn't remove the fact that it sold the fastest in UK, and the UK is part of Europe. Now if another console sold faster in France or any other part of Europe, you'd be correct.
True enough. From my point of view, it doesn't really even matter if they sold more units than other consoles in the history. I care more about the long term success of PS3.

[slade]

What North American and Japanese shortages Slade? Widely reported, PS3's were in stock at most major retailers across the US and Japan with the exception of a one week period at best immediately around Christmas.

From launch to Christmas, there were shortages of PS3's everywhere. It wasn't until January when they started showing up in stores in good number. Sony only delivered around 180,000 units to the U.S. at launch and a little less then that in Japan. They did better in December and they actually met their shipment goals starting from January onwards.

The "concrete" sales figures you provided show that Sony was unable to sell out of their uber-console on it's launch weekend. That's just sad.

On the other hand, they outsold the Wii's and 360's launch numbers. That's the main reason Sony is tracking ahead of MS in consoles sold over the first four months. They didn't try to play off the hype of an artificial shortage like MS and now Nintendo seem poised to do. Hell, why would Nintendo even have a shortage. All they did is duct tape two GC's together.

[Gadfly2317]

On the other hand, they outsold the Wii's and 360's launch numbers. That's the main reason Sony is tracking ahead of MS in consoles sold over the first four months. They didn't try to play off the hype of an artificial shortage like MS and now Nintendo seem poised to do. Hell, why would Nintendo even have a shortage. All they did is duct tape two GC's together.

Why would Wii have a shortage? 6 million units in 5 months is why.

Usually you are more logical than this "they outsold the Wii and 360's launch #'s". . . come on, you KNOW that Nintendo and MS had global launches with huge demand.

You also know that there is an abundance of Ps3's on the shelves in America while Wii's keep selling out, that Sony has been saving up units to launch 5 months later in the UK. Whoopee. There's been weak demand for the Ps3 in US and Japan, so when they finally launch in UK they easily have more launch units than they've had in the past for euro launches. That helps boost launch day #'s, but despite having more units they couldn't sell out on launch weekend, while its competitors continue to sell out month after month.

Opening day #'s don't tell us much--historically all they've ever told us is that a game manufacterer will sell out however many units they manage to produce. Ps3 did not sell out all units available, which is kind of a headscratcher. If Ps3 racks up bigger #'s than the competitors in the UK for the next few months, then we might have something to ponder.

[DrunkenThumbmaster]

It's impressive only because they were able to meet demand. I want to know though will they outsell there competitor for the month. Because even if they have the greatest launch ever (doesn't every launch of a console seem to be the best one ever since 9/9/99) if they are not outselling there competitors and still have stock on the shelves that will be telling.

[ilnadmy]

You are messing it all up dude. Here is what you quoted from MY post.

"It's real easy to say "Hey, we sold X amount of PS3's which is the bestest numbers evar" but neglect to mention that you didn't SELL OUT or that previous launches were supply constrained."

Here are the facts and a clarification since you are mis-reading the damn thing!

1) The sales numbers of what sold for the UK launch of PS3 is only 75% of what was shipped to retail. Therefore, they didn't sell out. Following me?

2) The article suggests that it is the fastest selling system launch ever. Now...

3) I was referring to the PS2 launch which DIDN'T have enough systems to meet demand. Therefore, it sold out due to a lack of systems. Meaning...

4) Isn't it ENTIRELY POSSIBLE that PS2, Xbox 360, Wii or any OTHER system could have sold as many units as the PS3 had THAT MANY been available?

By previous launches (at the end of the sentence you quoted), I was referring to OTHER systems that were released prior to the PS3. I hope this clears it all up for you. If not, Gadfly understands what I am saying.

1) Yes, they could possibly have sold more if there were more units available.

2)There weren't more units available, either due to a marketing strategy or a shortage of units.

3) For the PS3, there were enough units to meet launch demand.

4) This was rewarded by the highest launch numbers of a videogame system ever in Europe.

Now how is this Sony's fault?