GAME having a slow Chrimbo
GAME, the high street video game and console chain, has issued a trading statement saying that pre-Christmas software sales aren’t going as well as hoped and claiming that the shortage of PSPs and Xbox 360s isn’t helping to cover the loss either.
Whilst demand for the PSP and the Xbox 360 is remaining high, the limited availability of both consoles is not helping cover the serious dent in GAME’s pre-tax profits. Last year they pulled in a tidy £31.9 million but the statement to the Stock Exchange predicts this years trading to be somewhere between £3-13 million… a serious drop.
GAME have blamed the drop on a drop in software sales for the older platforms but were hoping that demand for the new consoles would help cover this. With both the PSP and Xbox 360 being pretty much sold out all the time lack of stock to cover demand is throttling sales.
This appears to be having a knock-on effect for the Nintendo DS which is now also starting to sell out as fast as stock can be supplied, especially the coloured Nintendogs bundle packs.
GAME says that although slower sales were expected on the older consoles, this has been worse than predicted as customers hang on for the next-generation consoles, further impacting sales. Looking forward, GAME are confident of a better year next year with more Xbox 360 and PSP stock becoming available as well as expecting to have both the PS3 and Revolution on the shelves sometime in the later part of 2006.
