| MikeB said: @ koffieboon Reread the thread, I only stated the Wii wasn't sold out in the Netherlands. I also stated that I think Nintendo could easily meet demand since the Wii doesn't include complex hardware for modern standards and they have enough resources available. Actually I would have wished to see pallets full of Wiis in the stores, if I am correct it may make some business sense to Nintendo but IMO it's a mistake to have shortages at this point. |
I don't believe that the Wii shortage is intentional, I think it is quite simply the combination of a system selling far faster than anyone expected and a company which is far more cautious and careful than most. In other words, Nintendo underestimated demand and waited far too long to increase production, and then increased production to too small of a level.
The unfortunate thing is this makes predictions very difficult because we can't really say what demand for the system was.
Personally, I'm of the opinion that shifts in desire for a system take time and that the best case scenerio for all consoles is that they sell 25% more next year than what their demand was this year, and the worst case scenerio for all consoles is that they sell 25% less next year than what their demand was this year. The reason for this is simple, a console sells at the rate it does because it should sell at that rate, and the reasons why the console is selling at that rate tend not to change drastically in a short period of time. As an example, if Price is the main detractor for the PS3 it will see improvements in units sold after every price cut; but it is unlikely that a $100 price cut would have more than a 25% improvement in sales long term, and it is unlikely that a console will see multiple large price reductions in a given year.
Basically, 2008 will be very similar to 2007 except I expect Nintendo to get supply to more closely meet demand.
