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Sony
Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) has issued a consumer
advisory in light of recent statements by Better
Business Bureaus in the U.S. and Canada concerning fraudulent
online PlayStation 2 sellers. In its advisory, SCEA recommends that
potential PS2 buyers “conduct business with familiar merchants or
research individual sites before buying.”
It also informs consumers about certain rights they have, such as a
law requiring the shipment of orders “within the time stated in its
advertisements and no more than 30 days after the order date.”
Another protection is the Fair Credit Billing Act, and relays that it
and other consumer rights information is available from the Federal
Trade Commission. The company also recommends that concerned
consumers call its own Consumer Service Department at 800/345-7669,
the Better Business Bureau or a local protection agency for more
information.
SCEA’s statement still insists that the company will have a total of
1.3 million PS2 units in the North American retail channel by the
year’s end, though analysts have estimated that SCEA won’t reach
that number and may only ship half that number due to production
problems. Regardless, the demand for PS2s will remain high for some
time, which opens the door to unscrupulous people making attempts to
take advantage of others looking to buy a PS2 console.
According
to a recent study by PC
Data, more women play games online than men. However, the margin
is quite small as women make up approximately 50.4 percent of the
online gamers. In addition, men and women differ on the types of games
they play online. While men favor war, sports and first-person
shooters, women are more likely to try online gambling, card games and
quiz/trivia games. Check the full release here.
Online
retail giant Amazon.com
recently announced that its Delight-O-Meter, the counter that’s
tracking the site’s sales during the holiday season (starting
November 2), has exceeded 25 million units sold with plenty of time
left for online purchasing. The e-tailer has indicated that orders
targeted for Christmas will be taken up until December 23 for items
that have 24-hour availability, and that the items will be delivered
up to and including Christmas Day.
It also marked some other highlights, which
include the fastest sellout of an item on two occasions: Amazon sold
out its stock of PlayStation 2 consoles in 30 seconds on October
26—the day the system launched—and again on November 24, the day
after Thanksgiving.
This
holiday season, Sega
of America is giving consumers some new Dreamcast hardware and
software bundles. Those interested can order online through the Sega
store or call 1-800-SEGA-SALES. Bundles include the limited
edition Sega Sports Pack, Samba De Amigo Pack, Quake III
Arena Pack, and SegaNet Pack.
Charles Bellfield, vice president of corporate and marketing
communications at Sega of America, said, “Sega wants to make it as
easy as possible for our consumers to purchase Dreamcast products this
holiday season…By offering compelling packages available online and
by telephone, Sega is promising our customers an efficient and
pleasurable shopping experience during a very busy, and often chaotic,
holiday season.”
America
Online Inc. (AOL) and Sony
Computer Entertainment Inc. in Japan are discussing potential
synergies that would enable PlayStation 2 owners to access the AOL
online service, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. Much
as AOL has become the largest online network and service provider
through liberal distribution and ubiquitous placement of its software
disks and CDs, the talks with Sony are targeting a potential concept
of bundling client software in the PS2 box or pre-installing it on
systems.
The report went on to say that the discussions are preliminary, and
that neither Sony nor AOL executives would offer comment to the story.
The
Video Software
Dealers Association has announced its VidTrac results for the week
that ended December 10, 2000. The top five videogames rented were:
1. Driver 2—PlayStation
2. WWF No Mercy—Nintendo 64
3. The World is Not Enough—Nintendo 64
4. WWF Smackdown! 2—Know Your Role—PlayStation
5. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2—PlayStation
According
to Famitsu.com,
Nintendo
plans to ship 24 million units of the Game Boy Advance in the first
year of its release. In addition, the company expects to ship one
million units for the launch in Japan on March 21, 2001. The Game Boy
Advance should be coming stateside in July 2001
At
a Tokyo-based conference in late-November entitled “What Happened to
PlayStation 2?” system owners gathered to share their thoughts about
Sony’s new
system—and it wasn’t a pretty sight, according to a story in Newsweek
magazine’s December 18 issue. For instance, when asked what they
were playing on their PS2, one owner indicated that he was playing Dragon
Quest, a PlayStation game, while many others indicated they were
using their system for mostly DVD movie playback.
According to the article, many bought the PS2 for its advanced
capabilities only to find that most of the game available after its
launch weren’t the cutting-edge fare they expected. Analysts who
first predicted widespread success for the system are now hedging, and
anticipating game-industry losses for Sony of over $200 million, the
first time it has suffered such a loss in years.
Additionally, there’s skepticism that Sony has solved the production
problem that’s left it with shortages of its custom “Emotion
Engine” graphics chip, though the company claims to have upped the
production output. If supply of the system in the U.S. is any
indication, Sony is having a hard time meeting its projected figures
of 500,000 units on the October 26 launch day, with 100,000 a week to
follow through the end of the year, for a total of 1.3 million on the
streets.
Dreamcast
owners will see some new wares on the SegaNet
online network, along with an early-2001 tournament aimed at
rewarding gamers. The first title to be added is Pod: Speedzone,
which is a Ubi
Soft creation. The title is a combat racing game that features
eight vehicles, six tracks and competition for up to four players.
Another title from Ubi Soft that will be introduced soon is Speed
Devils Online Racing. It’s a 3-D racing game on eight tracks,
using one of 22 hotrods, with sidebets adding to the excitement and
risk. According to SegaNet, demo discs with sample gameplay of the two
titles will appear in forthcoming issues of the Official
Sega Dreamcast Magazine and Rolling
Stone.
SegaNet will also offer a Pod: Speedzone tournament, which is
scheduled to be held on the network in February 2001. Details are
currently being worked out and will be announced in the near future.
Cybernet
Systems has announced the UseYourHead Plus package that
combines its UseYourHead
software and a Dolphin
Peripherals’ digital camera. UseYourHead enables a user
to control a game via gestures and movements captured by a USB PC
camera. Dolphin’s iCAM offers USB connectivity for easy install and
easy disconnect; and provides 352 x 288 resolution at 30 frames per
second.
The UseYourHead Plus bundle has an estimated street price of
$79.99, is being promoted with a limited-time rebate offer and is
being distributed in North America by Macmillan
USA. |
