Where are Wii?

WirePosted writes "Santa is in trouble, it looks like supplying the Christmas need for a Nintendo Wii game console is in jeopardy as stocks wither under constant and heavy demand. Conspiracy believers suggest this is an orchestrated move on behalf of Nintendo." Since this happens to be what I want for Christmas, I hope they work it out, or my loving wife has already found one.

Couple Thoughts

[stoolpigeon (454276)]

Two things jump out at me in this article. The first is that this once again proves that Gartner is worse than useless. The second is that they left out one element. Take a look at Amazon [amazon.com] or over at ebay [ebay.com]. There are literaly thousands of Wiis that have been purchased by people for no other reason than turning around and selling them above retail. This has been going on for quite a while, though the prices have really spiked in recent weeks. I think they were averaging around $350 on Amazon for quite a while, as opposed to the over $500 now. And the number for sale there has greatly increased. I think some people may end up still holding them after the holidays though, because part of the appeal of the wii is the price. If I'm going to drop $600 on a console - I might as well get a 360 with some games or a PS3 that can play all those PS2 games out there.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[antifoidulus (807088)]

I think some people may end up still holding them after the holidays though

Yeah, but most of them won't be out any significant amounts of money though, because they will simply return them the day after Christmas. Last year I went to Best Buy the day after Christmas because my mom bought me the wrong Simpsons season on DVD, so I had to wait in the return line. I noticed that almost everyone in front of me was returning ps3s. I bet that most of them were people who bought the ps3 to try to sell for a few grand on ebay, and when they didn't sell they went straight to best buy to recoup their $600. So most of the resellers probably consider it a no-risk investment on their part.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[stoolpigeon (454276)]

I didn't even think of that. People can be such weasels. Though it's good by me I guess. I told my kids that if we could get our hands on a wii at regular retail after the holidays, we'd get one. I'm letting them save up and we are going in on it together. I figure it's a good chance for them to learn about money and what not.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[billcopc (196330)]

I'd suggest these stores instate a "no returns" policy on gaming consoles, or tack on a fat restocking fee (like 30%), at least during the holiday season - anything to deter the bottom-feeders who are openly abusing the store's (supposed) goodwill return policy.

I tried a little experiment last week, I posted a (fake) Wii for sale on a local board. Within minutes I had a dozen replies offering $400-450 (retail price is ~$300 Canadian tax-in). Using their email addys, I looked them up on the sale boards and realized they were all resellers tacking on another $100 and re-flipping Wiis.

At that point I was EXTREMELY tempted to lure them to a remote area and beat them senseless with a Colecovision.

Sure, Christmas is little more than a sales event (sorry, Jesus freaks!), but this is just outright hateful greed.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[pyite (140350)]

At that point I was EXTREMELY tempted to lure them to a remote area and beat them senseless with a Colecovision.

Why, because at that point it became apparent to you that they understand economics better than you do?

Re:

[billcopc (196330)]

Economics != Greed

That is an American fallacy. You can't have democracy if all you want to do is take from others.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[BakaHoushi (786009)]

As someone who was "lucky" enough to be working at a Toys R Us during its launch last year (I say lucky because while I most certainly would not have been able to find one if I weren't there to make a reservation, it's hard to think of even the best game system being worth getting paid minimum wage to work in that festering shithole), and got one on day one, I hate these people with a passion. Are we really such greedy bastards? I don't even SELL my games. I don't sell books when I'm done with them, even if I'm not likely to read them again. I don't sell movies. These are experiences I've had, and I keep them as at the least a reminder of good times and fantasy worlds I can use for a little needed escapism.

Let's face it. Video games are GAMES. Their only real purpose, in my opinion, is to be fun. Yes, they can improve hand-eye coordination, make us better/worse readers (depending on what games you play. I have a hard time believing RPGs that are 3/4 text make us worse readers than people who guzzle down trashy romance novels), provide an outlet for stress, etc. but they're still just GAMES. Where's the love of playing the game? Where's the FUN? Have we, as a society, lost the ability to just DO something for the sake of doing it, without thinking of ways to make a buck off of it? (The correct answer is: Yes. Yes we have.) I mean, obviously Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft want to make a profit. But that's business. But getting a Wii. That's gaming.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[Wooky_linuxer (685371)]

I don't get it. You want to beat them because they are using capitalism to... make money?

They aren't forcing you to sell your Wii to them. Or other people to buy theirs. So what's the big deal? I understand people who buy Wii/PS3 in a retail store and simply return them if they can't be sold with hefty margins, are probably being unethical. But after all, it is their Wii. They can sell it if they wan't. It is up to a) consumers don't be stupid and don't pay the prices they ask for and b) Nintendo ramp up production. If some big company kept you from selling some good, or say some software or media, you purchased from them, how would you feel?

Re:Couple Thoughts

[Brickwall (985910)]

What good has capitalism brought to the world ?

Seriously, are you a low-functioning moron, or a high-functioning imbecile? Let's look at that bastion of socialist perfection, Cuba. It's been nearly 50 years since Castro took over; can you name a single invention or useful good that they've developed in half a century? Didn't think so.

In the meantime, bad old America created mini- and micro-computers, a bunch of useful programming languages, some tremendously useful software applications, cable and DSL data connections, a whole bunch of life-saving medicines and technologies, cellphones, LANs, fibre optics - I could go on, but what's the point? Jobs and Wozniak, Gates and Allen - I'm sure they were all interested in what they were doing, but I'm also pretty sure they did it because they wanted to make money.

I've seen some stupid comments on /., but this one takes the cake. You live in a style that kings and queens didn't enjoy 100 years ago, and you question the system that provided it? You are some kind of ingrate.

Re:

[mosch (204)]

It's not like Wiis are that cheap to begin with, at least not the way most people set them up.

Wii - $250
Wii Play w/Wiimote - $50
Two more Wiimotes - $80
An extra Nunchuk - $20
Component Video Cable - $20

And you're at $420 without buying any meaningful games, at regular retail price. Toss in sales tax and a handful of games, you've already broke $600.

Beyond that, I just don't buy the argument that a 360 or a PS3 is a true competitor to the Wii. People who buy the Wii want it for the innovative game play, and

Re:Couple Thoughts

[stoolpigeon (454276)]

Wont you be doing the same on the other platforms though? and from what I've seen wii games are a bit cheaper than the other two. I agree with you about the innovative game play - but if the console alone started at $600 or more, it wouldn't be selling like it is. Nintendo really found a sweet spot teaming up that new style of play with a great price point.

Re:

[EggyToast (858951)]

Not exactly; the other platforms have a push towards online play and single player play, meaning you pay the Gold account fee on a 360 and no extra fee on a PS3. You already own the single controller, which is all you need to play the online game.
It's a long term, non-permanent charge on the 360, for sure, but it is less than buying the extra Wii controllers.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[Pollardito (781263)]

my 360 didn't come with built-in wireless, that was a quick $100 tack-on right there

Re:

[teh kurisu (701097)]

That's not really a fair comparison, because online play requires that each player has his or her own console. If you assume the same for the Wii, that all the people you will play with have their own Wii, then they all have their own Wiimote and Nunchuk, so there's no reason to buy any extra controllers.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[vux984 (928602)]

It's not like Wiis are that cheap to begin with, at least not the way most people set them up.

Wii - $250
Wii Play w/Wiimote - $50
Two more Wiimotes - $80
An extra Nunchuk - $20
Component Video Cable - $20

And you're at $420 without buying any meaningful games, at regular retail price.

Sort of.

I am nearly your exact config (just add 2 classic controllers). But it probably took me 6 months before I had 4 Wii Remotes. (Although I actually had my "1st" Wii Remote, component cable, and spare nunchuk a full 4 months before I actually managed to get the Wii.

[At launch even the accessories were impossible to get, so I grabbed what I could, when I could.]

But while that might be how MANY Wii's end up, you can put a $300 box under the tree, if that's your budget, and still have something entertaining. If your buying it for someone over 15 they can accessorize it themselves.

That budget factor important to a lot of people. You can always add the other stuff later. And you definitely don't -need- 4 wii remotes on day one.

I'd say most people spring for a 2nd wii remote via Wii Play pretty quick, but it can take a while before they add more / finish it up. My parents, for example, got a Wii in the summer; and have added a second wii remote (wii play) and nunchuk, but that's it. They haven't bothered with the component cable either (their 32" TV can take component, but its SD, and for them its just not a priority. I doubt they are even really aware that they could upgrade the cable.)

Beyond that, I just don't buy the argument that a 360 or a PS3 is a true competitor to the Wii. People who buy the Wii want it for the innovative game play, and nothing else satisfies that demand.

Yeah, a BIG part of the market for the Wii only is interested in the Wii. For people who ultimately want both a Wii and either an xbox or ps3 (or all three) are going to get one of the other two, but yeah, a big part of the market just has no interest in the other two consoles.

My parents again, haven't got the slightest interest in either the xbox or ps3, at any price.

Re:

[hedwards (940851)]

But while that might be how MANY Wii's end up, you can put a $300 box under the tree, if that's your budget, and still have something entertaining. If your buying it for someone over 15 they can accessorize it themselves.

I don't think that people should underestimate this. I've done that with other things, and the quality of the stuff you can get in that manner is often times far better than when you're stuck buying it all at once.

My camera and home gym setups would both have been far out of my reach had I been required for one reason or another to plunk down the cash for either of those at once. It also allowed me to make better decisions about what extras to get.

Granted those aren't directly analogous, but there is a str

Re:

[rizzo420 (136707)]

i don't think most people are buying all of that. there's just not a need. not to mention, the wii comes with a game and the other consoles just come with 1 controller and no games. the price is already better than buying an xbox or ps3. the other thing is that those who are making those purchases aren't doing it all up front. they might go and get wiiplay to get the second remote and pick up a second nunchuck, making the price $320, but they're not going to buy 2 extra remotes right up front.

the compo

Re:Couple Thoughts

[Jarjarthejedi (996957)]

It's not like the 360 is cheap to begign with, at least not the way most people set them up.

360 - $350
Extra Controller - $60
HD Cable - $20

And you're at $430 without buying ANY games, at regulare retail price. Toss in sales tax and a handful of games and you've broke $700.

The Wii is the cheapest current gen (the PS2 and them are now last gen) console. That is a fact, no matter how the other console fanbois may boost the price by including accessories.

Oblig Penny Arcade http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2006/09/14

Re:Couple Thoughts

[mosch (204)]

Well, you've almost proved my point for me.

By the time you add everything up, you're looking at $600+ versus $700+. I just have a hard time believing that there is a significant contingent of people who are happy to pay $600 to play games, but think that $700 is too much.

I know the Wii is a little cheaper, but I still don't buy the idea that it's popular because of price. I think it's popular because it's really fucking fun; especially for people who want to play casually against friends.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[orasio (188021)]

How many kids broke the original NES pads ? Not many, those things were tough! Today's controller can't survive being thrown/dropped too often, and they wear down quickly during normal use.

The hell with this cheap consumer idiocracy!

Just for the record, my GF tossed my second wiimote 5 meters high while bowling, and dropped it on the floor. It works great right now. The other one was used to break a big glass lamp fixture, and remains scratchless (the same can't be said about the HP laptop sitting underneath, wich now quilifies as "scratchs and dents").

Greenpeace complains about Nintendo using too tough plastics on the WII. Maybe that happens because they are intended to last.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[Fozzyuw (950608)]

Take a look at Amazon or over at ebay.

Excellent point. There are few consumer goods, toys if you will, that this applies to. This "ticket scalping" like attitude is pretty new to a lot of consumers and of course they're going to blame the company directly. However, it's not the case. Besides the unprecedented demand (it's been practically sold out for over a year in a lot of places) and the fact that hot toys, even when not in demand in the off season, can see sold-out status during the holidays, Nintendo has actually increased factory [latimes.com] output for the holidays. Of course, I think 1.8 million consoles [kotaku.com] a month is nothing to shake a stick at.

I do feel sorry for a little sorry for those who cannot get one, but I also write it off as them not trying hard enough. With a little effort, it wasn't hard to get a Wii back in Oct. They would sit on the shelf for about 2 days before going sold out (according to GameStop and WalMart employees in my local area, YMMV). If you called every day, you'd have gotten one in a week. Of course, your best bet now is to wait until after Xmas, when the Wii bubble pops, and all those hording Wii's for premium re-sales during Xmas will flood the market at standard costs. Otherwise, good luck and keep trying!

Cheers,
Fozzy

Tickle Me Elmo

[tepples (727027)]

There are few consumer goods, toys if you will, that this applies to.

If by "few" you mean "about one a year that makes headlines on AP/Reuters", you're right. Remember Cabbage Patch Kids? Tickle Me Elmo? Furby?

Re:Tickle Me Elmo

[P3NIS_CLEAVER (860022)]

I never remember a toy that was 'in' for two consecutive years.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[0100010001010011 (652467)]

Craig's list!

Set up their RSS feeds and watch it. I got 2 Wiis for UNDER cost. One was from a kid bored with it selling it for a new BMX bike. No box, but everything was there plus 3-4 extra games $250 cash. Cheaper than if taxed in Illinois.

The second one... was an amazing find.
Wii
2 Full controllers (Not 4 controllers!!!! 2 nunchucks + 2 controllers as advertised everywhere else)
5 games
Rechargeable battery packs AND charger.
Component video.

All for $300. Foreign student moving back to his homeland. I e-mailed him with in 10 minutes of it being listed. I haven't added everything up but it looks like $450 worth of stuff no tax for $300.
One's going to my brother one I'm keeping.

This in the same are that I can't find one at any walmart anywhere. Where I've seen people selling them on Craig's list for
$600 with
4 controllers [sic] (2 controllers 2 nunchucks]
10 games [Wii sports + Wii Play added together]
etc.

For kicks I setup an auction exactly like the one I bought, in downtown chicago, same price.

5 e-mails in 6 hours.

The thing driving up prices is everyone seeing the prices being driven up which when they get their, they list it for $10 more...

Re:Couple Thoughts

[harlows_monkeys (106428)]

I might as well get a 360 with some games or a PS3 that can play all those PS2 games out there

Be careful with the latter option. Sony has made quite a few changes to PS3 backward compatibility with PS2, ranging from supporting it in hardware on some models, to supporting it by software emulation in others, to dropping it completely in still others.

Re:Couple Thoughts

[VGPowerlord (621254)]

Here's a quick list of the PS3 models available in North America and their PS2 compatibility:
20GB, 60GB - PS2 hardware
80GB - PS2 software emulated
40GB - No support for PS2 games

Re:Couple Thoughts

[stoolpigeon (454276)]

Every time the Wii shortage comes up on the dot, there are people who say they are easy to get. And maybe in certain locales that is true. But when even my local paper notices people hanging out at stores [orlandosentinel.com], following the UPS guy and such - I think it is safe to say that these little suckers are difficult to attain in many places. Reggie Fils Aimes has publicly said they wont meet demand through the holidays. [mercurynews.com] And I don't think he'd be saying that if there were any chance of them ramping up production any further.

Re:

[achtzwerge (1178883)]

Wouldnt it be smart to say such a thing, just to get all those undecided people to go out and buy a WII now? If theres plenty around, you might hold off on your purchase and maybe, just maybe buy something else entirely?

They're in Taiwan

[ragnarok (6947)]

I saw plenty of them yesterday at Guanghua Market in Taipei. The going rate here seems to be 10500 NTD.

Plenty of Wiis here

[Troed (102527)]

There are lots of Wiis in stock in shops in Sweden. Where do you want them sent?

(Seriously, I have no idea what Nintendo is up to, but claiming there's a severe shortage of PAL Wiis in the UK with lots of PAL Wiis available in other countries - only the plug on the AC adapter differs - doesn't sound right. Add a firmware flash and then the same hardware would become NTSC ... )

Blame the weak dollar

[killbill! (154539)]

Price in the US: USD 249
Price in Europe: EUR 249

The profit margin is much higher in Europe (even after accounting for VAT). It makes sense to give priority to the countries where the profit margin is highest.

Buzzlight year

[Turn-X Alphonse (789240)]

Any one remember Buzz Lightyear and the Furbies?

Same shit every Christmas just with a different name. Kids want the same 'cool' toy, so mothers (and some times fathers, but usually mothers) turn up at Toys 'r' US at 3am every day waiting for the next shipment then end up in near fist fights over it. It's been going on for as many years as I can remember, the only difference is the cost of the wii is much greater than the cost of a Furby or Buzz Lightyear was.

But hey, I already have a Wii and want a 360 this year, so I'm quite happy to watch the same story over again, except this time it's on slashdot instead of the local news.

Re:Buzzlight year

[microbrewer (774971)]

Any one remember Buzz Lightyear and the Furbies?

Same shit every Christmas just with a different name. Kids want the same 'cool' toy, so mothers (and some times fathers, but usually mothers) turn up at Toys 'r' US at 3am every day waiting for the next shipment then end up in near fist fights over it. It's been going on for as many years as I can remember, the only difference is the cost of the wii is much greater than the cost of a Furby or Buzz Lightyear was.

But hey, I already have a Wii and want a 360 this year, so I'm quite happy to watch the same story over again, except this time it's on slashdot instead of the local news.

The thing about the Wii is that its the Must Have Item 2 years in a Row

Re:

[0100010001010011 (652467)]

And most people that are complaining about production being low have obviously never worked in anything manufacturing related.

You can't just magically increase production. Nintendo increased their production to what they thought was 'safe' for their business. If they wanted to I'm sure they could have built 5 new plants, cranked out 5 million a month and had everyone a Wii within a year.

Then they woudl have had 5 idle manufacturing plans for the next X years until the Wii2 came out.

Re:

[Hatta (162192)]

Me, I'm getting a Gamecube this christmas. I like to stay a generation behind, you avoid the hype, prices are down, and games don't get less fun because they're old. Maybe in 2010 I'll check out this wii thing. :D

UK Status

[BarneyL (578636)]

Over in the UK supply isn't bad (although so tight that Nintendo are considering dropping all adverts [bbc.co.uk] to keep demand down), don't expect to get one from the first shop you go to (unbundled anyway) but a bit of work to find out which day stock is arriving to which retailers and you can pick one up. E-bay prices are only about £20 over RRP. Supply seems even better over in Europe, many are ordering through Amazon's German wing.
The real shortage over here are certain games, Wii Play and High School Musical currently go for silly money on E-bay and Amazon.

Where are Wii? Well, Ii'm iin Saiint Louiis

[Bushido Hacks (788211)]

Ii'm iin Saiint Louiis. Slashdot iis iin Dexter, Miichiigan. And the capiital of the Uniited States iis iin Washiington, DC.

Re:Where are Wii? Well, Ii'm iin Saiint Louiis

[StringBlade (557322)]

Don't you mean Saiint Lou-wii?

Seems in stock here in Sweden

[Jugalator (259273)]

I don't see a shortage here, really... Watching the other replies in this thread, I wonder how common problem this really is.

The retail price hasn't shot up for the holidays either. http://www.prisjakt.nu/produkt.php?pu=48126 [prisjakt.nu]

Re:

[rizzo420 (136707)]

the shortages are real in certain parts of the US. i live in the northeast and while i managed to get one back in january (though i had to get up at the crack of dawn and stand outside target in line), they're rare to see in stores. many people here say it's easy to get one, but unless you get to the store at the right time, you won't. and people who have to work during the week have it the toughest (that was my issue, i couldn't just spend time calling stores or visiting stores when i got a chance). th

Re:

[Builder (103701)]

The problem is very real in the UK. Every single shop in London has signs up explaining that they're out of stock. My local Game retailer is taking over 100 calls per day asking about stock. They get in about 25 a week in multiple shipments and these are almost always gone later the same day.

On one memorable occasion, they got a batch of 50 on a Friday morning and still had 2 left on Saturday.

This isn't a shop in the middle of London - it's out on the east of town in the arse end of nowhere.

Are the underwear gnomes in charge?

[UserChrisCanter4 (464072)]

Urban legends tell us that console manufacturers make no profit on the console but recoup the losses on games. Of course, various articles over the years have debunked that belief, and the general message seems to be that Nintendo was making a healthy profit on the Wii LAST year when they started selling it. With the reduction in cost on the various components, it can only be better this time around.

The simple fact is that Nintendo has underestimated demand YET ANOTHER time. It's not as though they were the only ones who made this mistake - tons of third party companies jumped in around July and August this year to announce that they'd be releasing titles for the Wii now (presumably they hadn't been onboard earlier because they expected it to be a failure). Analysts have been continuously stating that the Wii would "lose steam" when people got over the novelty. It never happened. Now demand is through the roof again, and it's a tough problem. Getting the output just right for the holiday season is tricky - too few and you're left with the current situation, but too many and you'll have factories sitting idle after the fact. Couple all of that with the problem other posters have mentioned, ebay and Amazon "scalping" of Wiis, and you've got more difficult problem than you might first think.

Bottom line: Nintendo makes good money on every Wii sold. Every Wii sold at holiday season also likely represents at least one more wiimote+nunchuk combo sale, which nets them even more cash, not to mention the additional games. But obviously Nintendo would rather turn down millions in profit so that they can keep the system "elite" or some such business. This is starting to sound like the old underwear gnomes business model meme.

Think of this way, if it helps: RockBand is also selling out like crazy. EA and Harmonix have publicly stated that they can't make enough to satisfy demand. They make a profit on the package. Do you think they're not selling more as part of some brilliant plan to make it even cooler?

Re:

[typobox43 (677545)]

I'm not sure that it's even fair to say that Nintendo underestimated demand. They're already producing 1.8 million systems a month. That's a ton of capacity, and they just may not be able to add much more within a reasonable timeframe. Besides, all that extra manufacturing capacity is going to be wasted money once the demand does dip.

Re:Are the underwear gnomes in charge?

[TeamSPAM (166583)]

From what I've read, the current production lines are going full tilt to get the 1.8 million/month. They will need major capital expense to expand production. How fast would Nintendo be able to recoup that expense? If demand drops before this, then as the parent mentioned the money is wasted and either ruin their profits or ruin the return on the capital expense. Nintendo is between a rock and a hard place.

The rock: Their competitors are able to throw a lot more money at the development of next gen consoles. Thus from a technology standpoint, better consoles.
The hard place: If they overextend themselves they may end up like Sega. No longer making hardware and creating games for other consoles.

idiots

[joe 155 (937621)]

"Conspiracy believers suggest this is an orchestrated move on behalf of Nintendo"

Then they would be idiots, do people think that when someone sells one on ebay for £320 (as I have seen happen, that's more than the PS3) they send off a nice cheque to nintendo just to say "thanks"? no. Nintendo loses money on each of these (since they only get the original sale and after the inflated price people are less likely to buy a lot of games). Nintendo really wants to meet demand, it's stupid to suggest otherwise.

Re:

[joe 155 (937621)]

as I understand it, they are. But they lose money in the sense that if they would almost certainly make more money if people weren't buying them to sell on ebay, this is because the inflated price means people have less money to spend on games - so whilst it might seem like they make money either way (which they do), they make less than they would have done

Just enough...

[Taulin (569009)]

Why would Nintendo want to sell more units than it takes to meet their projected sales for the quarter?

I got one, here's how:

[binaryspiral (784263)]

I wrote up a good explanation on how to score a wii:

http://binaryspiral.com/2007/12/01/how-to-get-a-wii-before-christmas [binaryspiral.com]

It's already worked for me and three other co-workers... YMMV.

Business school

[Seanasy (21730)]

I took a business class in which Nintendo was used as real world example for how they controlled prices for a release of Zelda. If I remember correctly it went something like this:

Nintendo tells retailers "we're going to produce X amount by Christmas, give us your orders." Wal-Mart tells them, "we're big and will sell a lot of games, give us a huge number of them at a ridiculously low price. Otherwise, we won't carry it and you won't sell enough of them to make any money."

Nintendo hates this, of course. So, they cut back sharply on production of the game. Closer to Christmas they tell the retailers, "oops, we only have Y amount. It's not enough for what we already know everybody wants. Give us your desired quantities with your _best_ price in Z days."

Walmart just lost their leverage. Nintendo sells fewer cartridges but at a significantly better price than Walmart was offering. Not as good as they originally wanted but better than Walmart's offer.

Something similar is probably happening here. The Wii could easily move in huge volume but the retailers would want a lower price. As long as:

FewWii x HighPrice > LotsAWii x LowPrice

you'll have a hard time finding a Wii.

Yeah, they pulled the ads

[Graftweed (742763)]

Yeah, it's crazy. Nintendo has indeed pulled [marketingweek.co.uk] all Wii ads in the UK.

We have been running the campaign all year round, but we want to take a responsible stance this Christmas and not fuel demand.

When was the last time a company decided to stop advertising a product because they were selling too much of it?

Probably a good move, there are already some pretty pissed off people out there as it is.