Official Confirmation: European PS3 Launch Now April? [Archive]

JamieSI

01-17-2007, 07:39 AM

Regardless of recent reports, it is now officially confirmed that the PlayStation 3 will launch in Europe during April - instead of the much-slated March 23rd date.

Sony Corporation CEO Howard Stringer recently told CNET news that April will be the release of the PS3 in Europe when responding to a question on the subject:

“We have got the European launch in April, which is very important to us”

More details can be found here (http://www.psu.com/node/6983).

Editor's Note: According to GamesIndustry.biz (http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=22290), SCEE said Stringer mis-spoke. What the hell is it with Sony lately? The left hand never knows what the right hand is doing.

Goronmon

01-17-2007, 08:03 AM

We have got the European launch in April, which is very important to usI felt compelled to chuckle when I read that second part.

captainspankypants

01-17-2007, 08:06 AM

Well, they missed Christmas 2006, so it might as well be October for all Sony cares.

TheEpicOfTyler

01-17-2007, 08:07 AM

I don't understand this... they just shipped 2 million PS3's but they couldn't put enough on the side for this March launch? Stupid.

Sandman

01-17-2007, 08:08 AM

So does this mean that we have to wait longer for the big update that was coming with that launch?

Vanthar

01-17-2007, 08:11 AM

Yea this seems stupid. If it is as it seems and they can currently meet demand in Japan and the U.S., I don't see why they aren't launching sooner in Europe.

Captain Awesome

01-17-2007, 08:13 AM

The second re-launch ;)

Grimmjow

01-17-2007, 08:13 AM

well atleast we have something confirmed

J-Dizzle

01-17-2007, 08:15 AM

Sony have always been dominant (at least over MS) in Japan, so the US market seems important to them.

I wonder how important they percieve the Europe market to be ?

How does the whole of Europe compare in numbers compared to North America ? Are they at all comparable ?

I just wonder how big a deal the European launch is to Sony in terms of gaining numbers of consoles in the market compared to the competition ya know ? So far they don't seem to be paying us much attention :)

Abednigo

01-17-2007, 08:18 AM

Yawn.

I am not too short!

Morangie

01-17-2007, 08:18 AM

Sony missing a release date? I just find that hard to believe.

Lind

01-17-2007, 08:18 AM

Well im not buying one on release. I thought about it, I got the cash and all but im happy with my Wii and 360 and theres not really any games I want for the PS3 right now. Perhaps in a year or two I'll pick one up.

The PS3 needs killer apps badly.

Captain Awesome

01-17-2007, 08:19 AM

I just wonder how big a deal the European launch is to Sony in terms of gaining numbers of consoles in the market compared to the competition ya know ? So far they don't seem to be paying us much attention :)

I'm sure Europe wants a PS3. Europe does have "big" numbers in terms of gamers. But I also believe Sony fucked up by dropping Europe out during the Holiday season. It seems people have found "other" systems they are more comfortable with by this time.

Time will tell. But I really don't know what the fuck Sony has been thinking lately.

TheEpicOfTyler

01-17-2007, 08:19 AM

I just wonder how big a deal the European launch is to Sony in terms of gaining numbers of consoles in the market compared to the competition ya know ? So far they don't seem to be paying us much attention :)

Maybe there are some technical problems they're hammering out for the EU launch. You guys got different TV's and such. :rolleyes:

Captain Awesome

01-17-2007, 08:22 AM

Maybe there are some technical problems they're hammering out for the EU launch. You guys got different TV's and such. :rolleyes:

haha, I wouldn't be surprised if that excuse was used :p

FullTilt

01-17-2007, 08:24 AM

That's not an official comfirmation. If the PS3 launches in late March, Sony would indeed be busy with keeping stocks and advertising rolling through April.

J-Dizzle

01-17-2007, 08:25 AM

Maybe there are some technical problems they're hammering out for the EU launch. You guys got different TV's and such. :rolleyes:

LOL yeah because that's something Sony have never had to deal with before.

Sheesh, I mean seriously. I personally am not really interested in a PS3. The one or two exclusives that MAY remain exclusive aren't the games I wanna play. So I'm just generally interested.

But as a good old Brit I am a bit miffed that they can't shift the damn things, and yet don't seem to be putting any effort into getting the system into Europe.

I mean, there's a lot of people here who play games... Surely it couldn't hurt their standings in all these NPD numbers that we keep seeing, to get a million consoles sold over the water ?

Very odd behaviour !!

Siraris

01-17-2007, 08:26 AM

There's no possibility that Stringer was mistaken in what he said. I mean how is this official? Let's look at the entire quote:

And then we have got the European launch in April, which is very important to us. I think we have 20 games out there. I assume we're going to increase the number of games.

I dunno, doesn't seem like he is very confident in anything he's saying there.

Borys

01-17-2007, 08:29 AM

Update the story, Jamie:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=22290

SCEE debunks Stinger's words.

phantomhitman

01-17-2007, 08:31 AM

they are waiting to perfect 2160p

Morratut

01-17-2007, 08:31 AM

So in other words Sony have put the launch back from March to April. I wonder which date in April?

It will probably get put back to May anyway :D

*EDIT* Lol the big cheese can't even get the date right :D

Gorvi

01-17-2007, 08:31 AM

There's no possibility that Stringer was mistaken in what he said. I mean how is this official? Let's look at the entire quote:

I dunno, doesn't seem like he is very confident in anything he's saying there.

Hell, if you read the entire article, it sounds like he's been huffing paint fumes.
Lost in the shuffle is the fact that the current games that are out there are only using about 20 percent to 25 percent of the bandwidth. Once the publishers' excitement reaches a level of intensity that they start using more of the bandwidth, that will create additional excitement.
WTF is that supposed to even mean? :confused:

TheEpicOfTyler

01-17-2007, 08:33 AM

Update the story, Jamie:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=22290

SCEE debunks Stinger's words.

Fun while it lasted. :(

DaXIthR

01-17-2007, 08:33 AM

Johan

01-17-2007, 08:35 AM

well at least we have something confirmed

With Sony, it's not confirmed until it's actually happened.

Even then, it's not exactly confirmed! :D

Update the story, Jamie:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=22290

SCEE debunks Stinger's words.

This just adds fuel to a fact that most sane people have known for a long time; Sony's leadership is in disarray. They can't even get a launch date down within their own damn company.

What the hell is going on inside Sony? Put up a damn calendar, for God's sake, and write in nice, large letters on the day/month of launch: PS3 EU LAUNCH HERE. :rolleyes:

J3DI

01-17-2007, 08:36 AM

By jov old chap... I think the gov'na is a bit late for tea...

Perhaps they are trying to beef up the game library so they'll have more to offer EU, by then Assassins Creed will have been released, and the PS3 will have about 20 games for them to choose from... right?

Cool AN

01-17-2007, 08:40 AM

It's the PSP release all over again.

Akeldama

01-17-2007, 08:47 AM

This was so obviously a slip of the tongue by Stringer. I'm surprised anyone took it as some kind of official announcement.

Grimmjow

01-17-2007, 08:55 AM

With Sony, it's not confirmed until it's actually happened.

Even then, it's not exactly confirmed! :D

hahaha

your right because look what just happened! it was confirmed that his confirmed was not confirmed @ all (if that even makes sense) lol

bapenguin

01-17-2007, 09:08 AM

This was so obviously a slip of the tongue by Stringer. I'm surprised anyone took it as some kind of official announcement.

That's been happening a lot with them. What was it last week, the whole Motostorm 1080p thing?

Edit: And this was my 10,000 post. Dang it.

Norse

01-17-2007, 09:14 AM

Another reason for us to never trust a thing a Sony employee says. Are they trying to win this generation by using confusion tactics?

Captain Awesome

01-17-2007, 09:15 AM

Welcome to 5-D!

Johan

01-17-2007, 09:24 AM

Welcome to 5-D!

Damned Double-speak & Dopey Displays of Disorder. :D

Siraris

01-17-2007, 09:29 AM

Sony's so full of shit.

Why on Earth can they not launch sooner given all the units sitting on shelves across the US and Japan?

Production issues are said to be resolved.
They still plan to have 6M PS3 shipped by March 31.

And they want to push their European launch back again - to April now?

Fuck sony.

Your trolling and flaming of Sony is getting really old. Just from a brief look at your post history, the vast majority of your posts are you swearing at Sony. You obviously have nothing better to do with your time, or some sort of strange fascination with the company. Disgruntled ex-employee, maybe?

You do realize that launching a console, especially in Europe, takes a lot more than just shipping consoles to the warehouses, right?

Grimmjow

01-17-2007, 09:31 AM

Disgruntled ex-employee, maybe?

Those are the best kind of people, but all jokes aside, as i mentioned it many times, it gets kinda old

Norse

01-17-2007, 09:33 AM

Siraris

01-17-2007, 09:36 AM

Well, Nintendo seems to manage it, and they don't have the logistical resources Sony has in Europe.

Manage what? They planned on a launch in December, Sony has now planned a launch in March. If they launched now, it would disrupt any marketing they have planned, any deals they have planned, any sort of launch party or whatever, the games that they want available won't necessarily be there, and whatever else they have in store. Again, it's not just putting the consoles on the shelves.

Norse

01-17-2007, 09:45 AM

Manage what? They planned on a launch in December, Sony has now planned a launch in March. If they launched now, it would disrupt any marketing they have planned, any deals they have planned, any sort of launch party or whatever, the games that they want available won't necessarily be there, and whatever else they have in store. Again, it's not just putting the consoles on the shelves.

Ignore my post. I think I misread your post. I somehow got the impression that you defended a delay because it's difficult to localize the console and distribute it around Europe. I'm usually so tired when I come home from work that my reading skills drops to zero.

bKangy

01-17-2007, 09:46 AM

Wow, congrats Sony, you managed to fuck Europe over slightly less than you did with the PSP.

*slowclap*

absolut taco

01-17-2007, 09:54 AM

Damned Double-speak & Dopey Displays of Disorder. :D
Wait, with the smiley that's 6 Ds ;)

BlackPete

01-17-2007, 10:45 AM

Sony really needs to stop making these kind of stupid mistakes. Nintendo did the same thing, and lost a lot of respect around here for them (Anyone remember "region-free" and "will play DVDs"?)

That alone wouldn't have been so bad if there were no other missteps. However...

Since the PS3 hasn't launched in Europe yet, all the Europeans can do is watch and wait. And while they're watching, they're seeing reports of how there are massive stocks sitting in Best Buy not selling. And they're going to wonder about that. Why aren't they selling?

The longer they get to watch and wait, the weaker their "impulse buy" will become. It's definitely in Sony's best interests to launch in Europe ASAP with no further delays.

Siraris

01-17-2007, 12:04 PM

DaXIthR

01-17-2007, 12:27 PM

Your trolling and flaming of Sony is getting really old. Just from a brief look at your post history, the vast majority of your posts are you swearing at Sony. You obviously have nothing better to do with your time, or some sort of strange fascination with the company. Disgruntled ex-employee, maybe?

You do realize that launching a console, especially in Europe, takes a lot more than just shipping consoles to the warehouses, right?

I've been outed.

Sony hasn't done anything to warrant praise in over a year - maybe longer. Most of my posts were written since then.

If you'd like to point out some poor reasoning or use of logic on my part, please do. I welcome it. I look forward to it. I beg for it.

If Sony wants me to stop calling them out on their BS, the solution is really simple. They can stop spewing it.

You take offense to my crude language; I'll take that to heart. I'll be more careful with my four-letter words.

Thanks for the constructive criticism. I certainly wouldn't want my valid arguments diminished by my loose tongue.

That said, I'd wished you take a minute to consider my points. If Sony still swears their going to have 6M units out of factories by March, and they have stock sitting at retail in the two territories they've launched in, why would the Europe launch need to be pushed to April? And why would say that in mid-January (with over 9 weeks to go before the last announced date - March 23)?

I'd love to hear your answer.

Gorvi

01-17-2007, 12:31 PM

That said, I'd wished you take a minute to consider my points. If Sony still swears their going to have 6M units out of factories by March, and they have stock sitting at retail in the two territories they've launched in, why would the Europe launch need to be pushed to April? And why would say that in mid-January (with over 9 weeks to go before the last announced date - March 23)?

I'd love to hear your answer.

But they're not pushing it back to April, that's already been confirmed as false. I do agree though, I doubt they'll have 6 million out by March, but you never know.

DaXIthR

01-17-2007, 12:46 PM

But they're not pushing it back to April, that's already been confirmed as false. I do agree though, I doubt they'll have 6 million out by March, but you never know.

I know that now.

I was just voicing my concerns regarding the situation as I interpreted it when the news first broke.

I guess, I think what the guy at Nomura Securities said last week the first sign of an Eastern analyst showing PS3 forecasts that were really, really bad. That's important, I think - that Japan is also losing faith in the product.

Not only did the cats at Nomura say Sony would ship only 4.5M by March, but only 11M instead of 16M by March 08, and something like 18M instead of 26M by March 09.

If Sony takes until March 08 to get to where MS will be in March 07 worldwide, the PS3 will finish in third place.

Chalex

01-17-2007, 02:31 PM

Nintendo did the same thing, and lost a lot of respect around here for them I LOL'd

Honestly, I did

Siraris

01-17-2007, 07:43 PM

I know that now.

I was just voicing my concerns regarding the situation as I interpreted it when the news first broke.

I guess, I think what the guy at Nomura Securities said last week the first sign of an Eastern analyst showing PS3 forecasts that were really, really bad. That's important, I think - that Japan is also losing faith in the product.

Not only did the cats at Nomura say Sony would ship only 4.5M by March, but only 11M instead of 16M by March 08, and something like 18M instead of 26M by March 09.

If Sony takes until March 08 to get to where MS will be in March 07 worldwide, the PS3 will finish in third place.

But most analysts said Sony wouldn't meet their year end targets, and they have now shipped 2 million worldwide only a couple weeks after the first of January. Unless those people are on the floors of the warehouses counting parts, and analyzing throughput, they have no clue how the numbers will pan out.

Regardless, why in the world would you get so upset about it? To get to the point of spewing profanity about something that has absolutely no effect whatsoever on you makes me think that something else is wrong with the equation. I was pissed at Nintendo when I found out it might be difficult to find TP on the Gamecube, but I didn't start banging on the walls and swearing.

And on top of that, if Europe needed to be pushed to April, there is probably a very good reason for it. Perhaps they have a big title that they want to launch along with the system that is having logistical issues, or perhaps Sony found that more people will be in the stores in April than in March because more people holiday at that time.

But it all comes back to the question, why do you even care, unless you live in Europe and are anxiously awaiting the PS3?

Jack B

01-17-2007, 07:56 PM

well atleast we have something confirmed

Yes, we do have something confirmed.... Again... :rolleyes: I couldn't resist. :)

I predict, that Sony will hit their sold targets thru March. It won't be 6 million, but they'll re-announce new targets until they eventually hit one...

Every company does it. Sony is just mastering the art lately. We'll have more confirmations of shipping targets, upcoming functionality and PS3 sales that will be missed, re-stated, re-confirmed, missed, re-stated, missed, then finally confirmed and what do you know, you'll see a press release saying...

"Sony delivers XYZ as promised!". Yeah...

I'm glad it's "really important to them" as well. Kind of like the hold message... "YOUR CALL IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO US... PLEASE WAIT ON HOLD FOR THE NEXT HOUR...". :D

I can't believe they'll leave Europe hanging for six months when they promised and definitely had enough units for a worldwide launch. That's just plain crapping on Europe.

I predict many won't care though. Sony dominates in Europe. Thank you very much, sir. Can I have another...

DSSJ

01-17-2007, 11:52 PM

Since the PS3 hasn't launched in Europe yet, all the Europeans can do is watch and wait. And while they're watching, they're seeing reports of how there are massive stocks sitting in Best Buy not selling. And they're going to wonder about that. Why aren't they selling?

The longer they get to watch and wait, the weaker their "impulse buy" will become. It's definitely in Sony's best interests to launch in Europe ASAP with no further delays.
Not even that. At least over here you can't watch anything if you aren't reading PSM or the internet.

I have friends who are interested in videogames and constantly ask me when the PS3 comes out. They were amazed as i told em it's available in the US.

There are no commercials and no news we could watch. PS3 could as well not exist.

DaXIthR

01-17-2007, 11:54 PM

But it all comes back to the question, why do you even care, unless you live in Europe and are anxiously awaiting the PS3?

I care because I care about videogames and the industry.

Sony's been the face of the home console industry for a decade, and for over a year, they've been showing unbelievable arrogance and complete lack of respect for people like me.

I care about sales charts, reviews, design postmortems, trends, innovations....you name it.

Anyway, I already feel like I'm repeating myself. So maybe this just not something you're willing to grasp.