This is not news for a lot of people here, but I can assure you a lot of XB360 fans were (and still are) fooled by this channel stuffing.
Their usual remark was : "It's impossible there are 3+M XB360 in the wild".
I think VGCharts took lots of abuse because of it too. I remember there was a poster making a long thread about VGCharts numbers being too low for XB360, that it was impossible, as MS said they sold 10.4M. He wouldn't understand MS could have fooled him.
I didn't understand how MS could force retailers to buy the XB360, because they sure enough wouldn't endure such costs willfully. I didn't think of the Vista trump card, now it makes sense, I'm sure that's what they did.
Anyway, that's the usual MS, the one I know at least, and that's also why I don't want them to succeed in the videogame business, and destroy it. I know pretty well what they are capable of, and I know they will do it. I already have my glimpse of a future with MS as the king of videogames : unreliable consoles, monthly subscriptions, increased console price with time, power power power to push hardware price up and hide their huge OS price in it, ... No thanks.
That's why I'll pass on a new XB360 console. If I buy one, that will be used (if they become reliable). I won't help this company destroy the videogame industry. I'd rather help Sony, I root for what I consider the lesser evil. I hope Sony succeed in fending them off. I don't think MS shareholders will accept another loss in consoles world.
Essay Pro