My son will hate me if I Ebay it...
Decisions, decisions...
Posted on 11/23/2005 12:42:11 PM PST by Cagey
Hundreds of video game fans waited in line in chilly weather across the U.S. Tuesday in order to be among the first to get their hands on Microsoft Corp.'s new Xbox 360 video game console.
They may be the lucky ones. Most stores quickly sold out of their limited supply and prices for the console on eBay topped $2,000. Consumers from California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, Texas and Washington complained to MSNBC.com that finding an Xbox 360 for sale was nearly impossible.
( The Xbox 360 is the first in a new generation of game consoles aimed at moving gaming beyond its traditional audience and is designed to offer near-photo-realistic graphics, play music and video and link up gaming communities over the Internet. Similar offerings are due from Sony and Nintendo next year.
Microsoft is offering two versions of the Xbox 360. The basic "Xbox 360 Core System" sells for $300, while a $400 version has a removable hard drive and can play older Xbox titles. Most buyers were expected to purchase the $400 model.
A crowd of gamers at a Best Buy in Manhattan clapped and cheered when the first purchases were made just after midnight Tuesday, but shortages dampened the mood even there. 19-year-old Peter Gonzalez, the first in line, said he felt gamazing,h and that his nearly 30-hour wait was worth it. The college student planned to stay up all night playing games before heading to classes in the morning.
But 90 of the 200 people in line at the store were disappointed to learn they had to buy the $300 gCoreh system because the more expensive model was sold out. "It's like buying a car without the engine," said Eddie Buist, 29, from the Bronx.
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
what happened?
The Chinese could not make the boxes fast enough?
They've created a Cabbage Patch doll.
Glad this one bypassed me. Hooray!
1. Spend some money hyping it up.
2. Then, make sure the supply/demand balance is way out of wack.
3. Enjoy tons of free press and advertising.
The "got to have it" toy for Christmas 2005.
I should have bought some for resale on Ebay, they are selling for $700-1000+.
Oh i see the article mentions they have ebayed for over 2k.
From slashdot.org
"BusinessWeek has taken a look at the insides of the XBox 360 and with the a little help from market researcher iSuppli determined that Microsoft is continuing its tradition to taking a big loss on the console in hopes of making a profit on games. From the article: "An up-close look at the components and other materials used in the high-end version of the Xbox 360, which contains a hard drive, found that the materials inside the unit cost Microsoft $470 before assembly. The console sells at retail for $399, meaning a loss of $71 per unit -- and that is just the start. Other items packaged with the console -- including the power supply, cables, and controllers -- add another $55 to Microsoft's cost, pushing the loss per unit to $126."
For the article and the links:
http://games.slashdot.org/games/05/11/23/1549209.shtml?tid=211
My thought is that they manufactured this shortage for two reasons:
1) To create the "if it's in short supply I gotta have it" buzz.
2) To divert attention from the fact that it's not directly backward compatible with all the XBox version 1 games out there.
I hope it shows up in the value of my MSFT stock.
There is no shortage of bidders either.
I remember the last xbox did the same thing ,though not as high.
Good find and that article makes quite a bit of sense.
People willing to pay that much for a toy obviously aren't "paying their fair share" of taxes.
Ah yes... the Gillette business model... Give 'em the razor, sell 'em the blades. The Printer/Ink Cartridge business uses this model, too.
LOL!
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