Good idea: Aussie retailers consider dumping Xbox 360
Down Under, they’re underwhelmed with Xbox 360. So much so that retailers are talking about giving up on the console and stocking only Sony and Nintendo gaming systems instead.
That prospect stems from a survey of 10 Australian chains, running more than 2,000 stores, and conducted jointly by tech journals ChannelNews and SmartHouse. According to survey respondents, Xbox 360’s future is “dead” in large part from the chronic hardware failures symbolized by the “red ring of death” on three lights circling the power button.
The platform has suffered as well from manufacturer Microsoft’s decision to go with HD DVD technology for playback of high-definition media. HD DVD died in February when lead developer Toshiba lost backing to continue moving forward on the project. Microsoft had offered a peripheral HD DVD drive for its Xbox systems.
HD DVD’s passing thus opened the door wide for rival Blu-ray technology to become the HD technology of choice. Sony’s PlayStation 3, meanwhile, comes with a Blu-ray drive built in. And that makes PS3 more appealing than Xbox 360, the survey said. PS3s are selling well now because they’re also the least expensive Blu-ray players on the market.
Nintendo’s Wii console also was viewed by survey respondents as a better option than Xbox because its motion-sensitive controller makes it more interactive, which has been a big selling point among women and children.
A Melbourne-based retailer told SmartHouse, “We are stocking (Xbox 360) because of our relationship with Microsoft, however all our energy and marketing is going into the PS3 and Nintendo Wii unless Microsoft comes up with something new. … We are even thinking of dumping the console altogether.”
Microsoft supposedly has started development on new platforms containing Blu-ray and sporting motion-sensitive controllers similar to the one with Wii, but even with both features Microsoft then would face long odds to make up ground lost in the console war by doing little more than re-introduce technology already available with rival devices.
The irony here is that Microsoft rushed out its Xbox 360 in late 2005, almost a year ahead of PS3 and Wii, to try grabbing the top spot in console sales and customer loyalty. Now, as the Aussie survey suggests, the hardware failures and lack of insight resulting from Microsoft’s haste threaten to drag Xbox 360 to the very bottom in both categories.
I can understand that, if 360 is not selling there. We have the same problem in our store, except with the PS3. In a typical month, we may sell one PS3 game, zero systems and zero accessories. We actually went a stretch of 9 months without selling a single Sixaxis controller. Meanwhile, 360 accounted for 22 percent of our total sales for calendar year 2007, which is pretty amazing since we sell movies and music as well as games back to the Atari 2600. Each area is going to be different. For example, at our old location, Sony was king. At the new one, Microsoft. It is strange to see how much difference that a different neighborhood can make.