• 22 percent — I record my progress faithfully everyday • 6 percent — Maybe once every two or three days • 6 percent — Once a week • 64 percent — Stopped using after purchase
A possible reason for putting more shipments the way of Europe rather than US for the time being is the weakness of the $ and relative strength of the Euro. The same thing has been suggested for the Wii console so why would it not apply to WF as well?
And yes a shortage for a while is not going to cause a massive crash in lifetime sales but im sure it certainly has an impact, this theory of Nintendo witholding stock to increase hype is, if true (which i doubt), complete madness. Whilst shortages may generate a small amount of attention, im certain that Nintendo would be wanting to see consumers hand over their cash as soon as possible as prolonged shortages do harm sales i believe. Who knows how many Wii's could have been sold by now if the supply was there to keep up with demand.
@vGInfidel, Well, I do hope for more shipment to Europe, to deprive US from getting replenishment, but I am sure that Nintendo is not that stupid :). If they are that stupid, it is a wonder they had survived for such a long time.
I think Europe will get somewhere from 20K - 100K for next 2 - 3 weeks, just to keep it available (as you said). However, I don't think it is that easy for the pre-release hype and marketing to be forgotten so quickly (in just 2 - 3 weeks). I mean, Cabbage Patch Kids, Pokemon, and recently Wii H/W itself (sold out status for 1 year), has proven than US market didn't forget hype that quickly.
I don't know about Europe market, but I have a feeling that it is also the same. As long the item is STILL available (in small quantity, sold out within first day of receiving shipment), people will NOT forget about it.
Well if you're short on the May future shouldnt you be hoping for it to be the other way round? :D
I doubt the UK will get any substantial numbers for at least 2-3weeks at least. Just enough to ensure some are available so it keeps the consumer interested in searching for it. If you definetly cant get something for a month then its easy to forget about it altogether and the pre-release hype and marketing would have gone to waste.
@vGInfidel, Nice find. We'll see how true the representative statement in this week / next week ELSPA chart :D.
I have a feeling that with US launch only on their second week (this week), UK will still feel the pinch (minimum replenishment) this week and next 2 weeks.
UK runs out of Wii Fit, Nintendo will replenish ASAP
Nintendo tells GI.biz that it will replenish the UK's stock of Wii Fit "as soon as possible." A Wii Fit shortage in the UK became quite obvious this past week as the fat-reduction simulator practically disappeared from the UK sales charts.
A Nintendo representative put semi-adequate spin on the situation stating that there are "pockets of stock shortages" around the UK. When a game goes from the #2 spot on the sales chart to dropping off the Top 40, that appears to be more than just "pockets" of shortages. Nintendo claims consumers in the UK will be able to pick up a Wii Fit soon enough as the company continues to replenish stock on a weekly basis.
EDIT: I screwed up sorry. It's ~250K in the UK opening week and around ~350K overall. NeoGAF seem to think this ties in with some revenue figures from another source.
0