America HW up!

[oldschoolfool]

Reasonable said:
I'm not sure about shortages in the US, not living there, but I'd note most are assuming shortages means Sony didn't make enough PS3s.

In the US it's much more likely that if there are some shortages in certain areas its because the retailers didn't order enough due to underestimating local demand change due to new models, prices, games, etc.

TBH if I was a US retailer, seeing the Wii selling the most, then the 360, then the PS3 I wouldn't take Sony's word for it and increase my orders for the PS3.

Also, shortages at retail can be linked to the space allocation, which is of course limited. If I have the Wii and 360 selling well and taking up most storage space, I may not be able to easily fit in more PS3s if basic sales rate increases. I might need time to rethink my stocking strategy.

So anyway, I can easily image how certain retailer stores could have shortages of PS3 based on how it was selling historically and the space they'd already decided on in the store for the unit vs an increase in demand locally in that area.

I doubt this is anything huge though - as in I doubt Sony are missing 30 K or more sales of PS3. I'm sure the lost sales would be less than that.

In US the 360 has the upper hand, and it'll take regular boosts on the back of price changes, exclusive titles and increased BR adoption to help PS3 now. There isn't going to be a huge swing to playing CoD on PS3 vs 360, for example, so multiplatform titles only play to the current situation really.

Probably GoW3 represents the PS3's next chance to claw back some market share in US, as of course that's exclusive and could draw in any big GoW fans who haven't got a PS3 yet. I guess GT5 to a lesser extent could gain the PS3 some marketshare, and perhaps FFXIII, although of course MS have moved to take the sting out of that particular titles.

I live in okc and haven't seen a ps3 on shelves in awhile. I've went to best buy and walmart.