Intense demand stifles Wii expansion ambitions
The unprecedented demand for the Wii console worldwide is stifling Nintendo's plans to push the innovative console through non-gaming retailers, as the platform holder struggles to meet demand from existing retail partners, reveals Big N boss Satoru Iwata in a new financial report.
"We are sorry that we were unable to sufficiently forecast this kind of demand," the CEO added on the subject of low availability of units, admitting that plans to sell the machine in a number of new stores is now on the back burner. "Making a significant volume of the high-tech hardware, and making an additional volume, is not an easy task at all," Iwata explained in the briefing. "In fact, when we clear one bottleneck for a production increase, we will face another one."
Iwata did affirm to investors that there will be a 'small' increase in production capacity as of this month, but it seems unlikely it will enough to satiate demand for the Wii. In another area of the report, Iwata-san refuted accusations that the Wii is not a true 'next-gen' console, pointing to various state-of-the-art technologies, such as the console's compact size and power-saving features.
He also dismissed the threat of mobile phones to Nintendo's long-running dominance of the handheld market, and also said it was unlikely Ninty would hire the recently 'retired' PlayStation 'father' Ken Kutaragi. More as we get it.