The Wii is still sold out
On Monday, we reported on the Wii Fit shortage. But believe it or not, the actual Wii console is still in short supply, a year and a half after its release. If you're like us, you figured that after the holiday season the overwhelming demand for the Nintendo Wii would finally let up and you'd finally be able to buy the console easily online and in stores. However, the Wii is still essentially sold out online; we couldn't find the console available to buy from major retailers like Amazon.com, Best Buy, and Circuit City. We did find a few places where you could buy a Wii, but they required you to buy an expensive bundle, like GameStop's $400 bundle or Wal-Mart's $500 bundle. According to Wii Tracker.com, you can't buy a Wii online for less than $390.
We contacted Nintendo for a comment on the persistant Wii shortages. Here's what the company said:
No home console has ever sold so fast for so long. We planned for big numbers--but not necessarily historic ones. We're doing everything we can. In fact, Nintendo recently forecast that for the fiscal year that began April 1, 2008, worldwide shipments for Wii will increase to 25 million from 18.61 million this past fiscal year. This summer, Nintendo will raise production to 2.4 million systems per month.
That extra production should help the shortage, but who knows if it's enough to handle demand. And while Nintendo claims it is doing everything it can, that's a little hard to swallow now that the company has had plenty of time to ramp up production. For what it's worth, other consoles are readily available online, with both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 available at Amazon. And Nintendo's other popular platform, the DS, can be ordered in a variety of colors.
When do you think the Wii will be in ready supply? Does anyone think Nintendo is purposely creating an artificial shortage? (We don't.) Does anyone have any tips for Wii seekers?
I have to be honest, since I got my Wii in November '07, I've played it only 12 TIMES--there just is'nt anything there (or in stores) to keep me on for any amount of time, or to get me to play for that matter. Sure it has it's moments, ie; Everybody votes channel, and the Mii network are a lot of fun but these are essentially family/group apps and are only fun for a while, maybe I should have bought an Xbox?
Beyond that, opening new factories and lines to drastically up production incurs a significant fixed cost that can become a burden once demand eventually tapers off. You can't "un-build" a factory.
There's no reason to intentionally keep supply constrained when demand is continually un-met, however, there is every reason to not rush out and overproduce to satisfy demand in 2008 when you will have a surplus of resources wasting money in 2010 unless the money that stands to be gained is so significantly compelling that you can't afford NOT to build one. I am quite sure that Nintendo has done the math. Sure, 360 and PS3 are readily available, but there are clear reasons for both, and both were outsold combined last month by Nintendo's juggernaut.
I think that it should be relatively easy to find one now at the Brick and Mortars, and there is no need to buy a bundle.
the way nintendo manufactures is based on many diferent concepts used by many japanese companies.
sure nintendo must be shipping more to EU since the dollar is so weak right now, after all nintendo is a bussines and it works on a profit. but it works with a projected demand, an american company would produce at its maximum capacity and create the demand, the japanese model works with the pull system, in which the market pulls the production. obviously the demand is there, and nintendo must have projected the demand way wrong! but it cannot simply ramp up production because in the japanese model the companies work with a risk sharing system, in which all partners share the risk but also share the profits , so nintendo can't force a partner to change its current production system and nintendo won't go after a diferent partner just so nintendo can sell more products
yeah, whatever...
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by irhfah
May 21, 2008 3:47 AM PDT
- Hi All,
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See all 203 Comments >>I live in IL, and on Friday I went to Sam's and saw on the door a sign that stated, Wii's are in stock. I walked back to the section and pulled a tag. There were tons of tags left. Try some of the discount stores, I have had luck there finding items.