Xbox "meeting strong demand" [sic]
Microsoft put a brave face on European launch
Microsoft continued their struggle against reality today by issuing a press release euphemistically titled "Xbox meeting strong demand". According to the PR, "weekly replenishments are ensuring that strong demand for the Xbox video game system is met .. with no stock shortages". At no point do they say exactly how strong that demand is, but judging from the sales figures we have seen so far, we doubt that the Hungarian factory pumping out our Xboxes is exactly being stretched to capacity to meet it. "We are very pleased with the success of Xbox in Europe to date", Sandy Duncan reiterated, apparently subscribing to the theory that if you repeat something often enough people will believe it. "We're happy with the strength of Xbox sales, and especially happy with the software and peripheral attach rate, which we believe will set a record level for the launch of a console in Europe. When you consider that we didn't launch before Christmas, the feedback we are getting from retailers is even more encouraging. We're off to an incredibly strong start in Europe and gamers are obviously liking what they see - feedback from new Xbox owners has been fantastic." Related Feature - Xbox European launch a success [sic]