Most people who have tried to get a Wii since last November have faced a continual uphill battle to get their hands on one of the elusive machines. The shortage has had people wondering if the scarcity of the item was due to a conspiracy by Nintendo while Mario and friends said that they were doing everything they can to meet demand. But things aren’t going to get any better soon, according to Perrin Kaplan, Nintendo’s Marketing Vice President.
In a Game Theory podcast, she explained that the phenomenal popularity of the Wii is the smoking gun causing the scarcity of Wiis. "We are at absolute maximum production and doing everything we can. The number of units that we have been able to produce has far exceeded our hardware production in the past, and the production levels of a lot of our competitors, but demand continues to be really high."
So what is her advice to the millions of people who are trying to get a Wii? "People are being really diligent about working with retailers to locate [a Wii] but we are cognizant of the fact that a lot of fans are not able to get their hands on one yet. We are asking them to be patient and to know that we are working on this as fast as we can."
Considering how popular the Nintendo Wii has become, it is amazing that Nintendo hasn’t gouged the public by raising the retail price of the game console. Perrin explained that the thought did cross Nintendo execs minds, but went against it. "… there was definitely that possibility. There are so many people who are very much liking the system and while the price that it’s at is very much mass market we probably could have folded at a higher price but I think that it was always Nintendo’s intent to make it a product that is appealing to the mass market."
Thanks Mario, we appreciate it.
