Although Kinect isn’t selling out at every store in the world, a number of areas are reportedly suffering from shortages, and this has already inspired the vultures of eBay to start exploiting the stupid. According to Lazard Capital Markets analyst Colin Sebastian, Kinect is selling for $190 on eBay, significantly higher than the already too expensive $150.
“While several retailers are indicating out-of-stock positions on their websites, the majority of bricks and mortar stores we called had units available for sale,” says the analyst. “Nonetheless, we believe that early signs of demand for Kinect bode well for the device as a holiday gift item, and if the momentum continues, could provide the industry with a near-term shot in the arm.
“Our survey of completed transactions on eBay indicates that Microsoft Kinect, the motion sensing controller for the Xbox 360, is selling for an average price of roughly $190, or nearly a 30% premium over the retail price of $150.”
I’m really curious to see just how well Kinect has performed. There’s no arguing with the fact that MS’ marketing blitz has created a success, but did it outclass the Wii’s launch as Microsoft declared it would? I’m not quite seeing that level of hype for Kinect, but it’s still a long time until Christmas. That’s when people really get stupid.
