195w ago - In an interview today, chief executive of Sony Computer Entertainment of America Jack Tretton said he expects the PS3 price cuts and lineup of popular games due ahead of the Christmas holiday will lift the entire video game industry, following some six months of sales declines.

However, he also noted that higher demand for the PlayStation 3 could leave some retailers out of stock.

To quote: "In a very difficult economy, I couldn't be more optimistic about our fortunes for the rest of the year and for the future," he said.

But he noted that higher demand for the PS3 could leave some retailers out of stock.

"If things continue at this pace, it is conceivable that there will be product shortages," Tretton said.

245w ago - Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime has again warned that they may struggle to meet the huge demand for the Nintendo Wii this holiday.

To quote: Fils-Aime was cautious on whether the company would be able to meet demand again this holiday.

"I don't know if we'll be able to, but were we to get in a car right now and go to 100 retail locations in the San Francisco area, we would not be able to find a Wii in at least 60 of those stores," he says. "Our hope is that by next week, the Friday after Thanksgiving, and on Dec. 23, you'll be able to find a Wii."

Analysts anticipate strong sales for the Wii despite predictions of a broad decline in spending on consumer electronics. "It will sell well," said Lazard Capital equity research analyst Colin Sebastian in an e-mail. "The console remain in high demand, and I expect retailers will be using Wii's to attract store traffic throughout the shopping period."

The Kyoto-based company's profits increased 48% to $2.6 billion in profits in its 2008 fiscal year, which ended in March. Nintendo reports its next quarterly earnings on Oct. 30.

292w ago - Sony is taking advantage of Nintendo Wii shortages and a recent price cut of the PlayStation 3 to double weekly sales of the console in the US.

Sony boss Howard Stringer told the Associated Press news agency: "It's a little fortuitous that the Wii is running out of hardware."

Two weeks after the price cut Sony sold 100,000 PS3s in seven days.

Mr Stringer said the increase in sales of the console was "the breakthrough we have been anticipating."

He added: "Obviously, we've taken so much heat over the year on PS3. Finally, the turning point has been passed."

Nintendo has become a victim of its own success, with many shops in the US and UK struggling to meet demand.

A spokesman for Nintendo UK denied that the company was witholding supply to boost interest.

"The video games market is a fiercely competitive one and it is not in our interest to withhold stock from anyone," he said.

Microsoft and Nintendo have not released weekly sales figures for their consoles.

292w ago - A chronic shortage of Nintendo's popular Wii console could mean disappointment for those putting it at the top of their Christmas list.

The BBC has learned that high street retailers are struggling to keep up with demand for the console, which has been in short supply for months.

Websites such as Wii-consoles.co.uk have been set up to help shoppers find out when stock becomes available.

Nintendo said it was "doing everything possible" to keep up with demand.

Its push to fill the shelves in time for Christmas will see it ship an extra 3.5 million consoles globally. It is not known how many extra consoles will make it to UK shelves.
In April Nintendo estimated a yearly shipment of 14m units, but that has now been raised to 17.5m.

Despite this, the gaming giant admitted that not everyone who wants one is guaranteed a Wii this Christmas.

"The demand for Wii hardware globally has been unprecedented and higher than Nintendo could ever have anticipated," said a spokeswoman.

"Nintendo is now in a position in which seasonality demand trends are being broken, therefore the demand for Wii hardware is constant throughout the whole year globally. Due to this phenomenon it is possible that the demand for Wii hardware may outstrip supply," she said.