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Guaranteed Wii ... Come January

Posted Dec 14, 07 6:25 PM CST in Arts & Living 

(Newser) – Kids hoping to score a Nintendo Wii this Christmas might have to settle for a skimpy rain check instead, the Los Angeles Times reports. Nintendo has completely sold out of its popular video-game console and won't be shipping any new units until January. Instead, buyers can reserve systems with full-price "Wii Certificates" available Dec. 20-21 at GameStop.

Though a reservation may satisfy some shoppers, others will likely resort to paying skyrocketing prices on auction sites like eBay. Admits Nintendo's US branch president, "This shortfall benefits no one. Enough systems would make everyone, including me, happier." Neither GameStop nor Nintendo would say how many "Wii Certificates" would be available, one exec putting the number at "tens of thousands."

Sources Los Angeles Times, Reuters

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This photo from Nintendo shows the Wii console. Nintendo sold 350,000 Wii consoles during the first week of the holiday shopping season. (AP Photo/Nintendo)   (Associated Press)
In this photo provided by Nintendo Co., a box of Wii video game system components are shown Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007, as they pass through the company's distribution center in North Bend, Wash. Nintendo...   (Associated Press)
A customer, right, hands over his credit card to purchase Wii video game console at the Nintendo World store in New York's Rockefeller Center in this June 21, 2007 file photo. A year after its launch,...   (Associated Press)
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