Whilst we are hearing stories of massive Xbox 360 shortages in the US and in Europe (has anyone actually started fighting over them yet?) the launch in Japan seems to be a pretty meagre affair, as we have reported. It appears that the Xbox 360 is estimated to have sold between 42,000 and 62,000 units in its first two days on the Japanese market, a far cry from the levels that Microsoft would be hoping and expecting. Reportedly, retailers still have plenty of stock of the consoles. Rumours have emerged of Japanese retailers actually slashing prices to get rid of stock. Microsoft seemingly still believes that it can sell one million 360s in the region by mid-2006, but this does seem a little unlikely given the current lack of interest in the console by the Japanese.
Anecdotal reports out of Japan suggested that many popular retailers were left with stacks and stacks of Xbox 360 units behind counters, begging to be purchased. According to Famitsu's data, from market research firm Enterbrain Inc., for the 360's first two days of availability Microsoft managed to sell only 62,135 units of the console out of an initial shipment of 159,000.