Blue Xmas for Xbox 360 Shoppers

For those whose shopping lists still include Microsoft’s Xbox 360 video game system, it’s looking like a blue Christmas. Most stores and online retailers are sold out of the system, which starts at $300, and don’t expect new shipments to satisfy the demand. Auctions on eBay and Craigslist are being bidded up to $1,000; sites such as xbox.clambert.org have sprung up to track availability on the Net.

It’s unclear when individual stores will get replenishments; most spokesmen recommend that customers visit local stores and websites. "When the consoles come in, we’ll put them out," says Circuit City’s Jim Babb.

The shortage hasn’t hurt Microsoft yet, [analyst] McNealy says. "Their larger concern is how fast they can ramp up in the first six months of 2006, because Sony is expected to start banging the drums for the PlayStation 3. People will start to get distracted from the Xbox 360 in January."

USAToday (via Yahoo) - Santa runs short of Xbox 360