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Desperate families pay up to £500 for a Nintendo Wii on internet
Last updated at 00:07am on 26.11.07
In demand: The must-have Wii console
A shortage of one of this year's must-have gifts is sure to cause tears and tantrums on Christmas morning.
And the children won't be too pleased either.
The Nintendo Wii - a computer games console designed to appeal to adults as well as youngsters - has sold out in shops across the country.
Chains such as Game, HMV, Woolworths and Tesco say they are receiving more stock only sporadically and the consoles are changing hands for up to £500 on internet auction sites - a huge mark-up on their list price of £179.
A spokesman for HMV said: "The fact people can't find them seems to drive the demand forward. They are selling out as soon as they are going into the stores."
The supply problem stems from the fact that Nintendo is simply unable to keep up with global demand for the family-friendly Wii.
Its more expensive rivals, the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, are aimed more at dedicated gamers. But the Wii - pronounced 'wee' - is designed to be easy and fun to use, even for those who have never played a computer game before.
Instead of a traditional control pad, it comes with a motion-sensitive remote controller. This can be waved to simulate playing tennis and other sports.
Reader views (6)
Is it not entirely possible that the market for the Wii is stronger in the UK than the rest of Europe?
- Alan Davies, Luton
Funny how they are in limited supply here in the UK, yet pop across the channel to France, Belgium or Germany and there are loads available! Smells rather like Nintendo are trying to play with the markets.
Amazon.DE used to ship to England, until "suddenly" they stopped doing so. I wonder who asked them to?
- Gavin Hall, Maidstone, Kent
Fools and their money. Give it a few weeks after Christmas and they'll be readily available in the shops, probably for less than the £179.00 they officially retail at at the moment.
- Md, London
Catch Eurostar, and go to Brussels. Media Markt had hundreds of Wii boxes a couple of weeks ago, when there was not a single one on sale in Bluewater. Distribution in mainland Europe does not appear to be a problem.
- Adrian, London
Really? I bought one for a friend last week, it cost £180, perhaps this is simply the media causing panic buying and thus pushing up prices as they do every Christmas?
- Trevor Roll, London
Hardly "desperate" if they can afford to pay that much over the odds. Its a games machine, for goodness sakes.
- Rogan, Dallas TX
