Gamers counting on purchasing a next generation console, Xbox One or PlayStation 4, this holiday season may have to return disappointed as both the consoles have run out of stock.
Microsoft and Sony are battling hard to meet the overwhelming console demand this holiday season. Only a few retailers have limited number of consoles left for sale while most of them have run out of stock.
The Microsoft store in New York was left with only one Xbox One on Christmas eve, reports CNN. As far as PlayStation 4 is concerned, the console has been sold out nearly everywhere other than eBay, Half.com and Radio Shack. Most of these online retailers have been offering the console in a bundle with other games and Play Station Cards at a lofty price.
The Amazon deal sounds pretty expensive, offering a PlayStation 4 console, Battlefield 4 and PlayStation Network card, starting at $701.99. The price offered by eBay is way cheaper compared to the Amazon deal. However, Amazon is making an average profit of $150 on each console which is cheaper than some other retailers who are now selling them for around $599, about $200 more than the actual price, reveals a recent post on inquistr.
The unprecedented demand is a result of gamers waiting for an update for nearly seven years after Xbox 360 and PlayStation was released.
Consumers who weren't able to lay hands on an Xbox One or PS 4 expressed their outrage on social media sites. Some claim that console developers are creating an artificial shortage to increase demand.
John Tretton, head of Sony's US operations, has refuted the claims made by the gamers. "Do you create an artificial shortage because you want there to be a feeding frenzy? No you don't," said Tretton on a PlayStation blogcast. "The holidays only come around once a year so that's really when you want to take advantage of the market opportunity."
According to Tretton, the shortage in supply is due to the immensely complicated manufacturing process of PS 4 that requires more than months to produce a million consoles. Microsoft also came up with a similar explanation on its blog post, stating that the company is struggling to provide enough supply to the retailers due to increasing demand.
Nintendo has struggled for nearly four years to meet consumer expectation with on and off supply of its WiiU console.
