There was massive anticipation for the video game industry in 2020. We knew that this would be the year that both Sony and Microsoft would be bringing out their next-generation video game console platforms into the marketplace. However, what we didn’t expect was a worldwide health pandemic outbreak to make changes to our daily lives. Despite the virus becoming a problem everywhere, both Microsoft and Sony were able to bring out their next video game console into the marketplace.
However, because of the virus health pandemic outbreak, things were a bit different when purchasing consoles. Some markets around the world were enduring a lockdown, while others had strict retailer policies that prevented from consumers gathering on location. It’s proven to be a difficult obstacle for gamers to obtain a console which is has been mainly done through online purchases.
In fact, with such a hyped launch, markets all over the world are stuck in quarantines, and being the holiday season, there has been an influx of consumers wanting to get their hands on a unit. Unfortunately, what we have been seeing online is retailers with no stock left and consumers forced into waiting until the market is able to stabilize with units readily available for purchase or having to fork out more money to a reseller. The latter has been a real problem with resellers quickly purchasing console units up and flipping them online. This is not unique as there are resellers that are quick to buy hot ticket items to make a profit.
Wherever you stand on the subject, it’s certainly a blow to the consumer that is forced to buy at a big premium. Some units are going for well over double what they cost in retailers. One reseller group has been boasting that they are using bots to purchase units up and flipping them. The group that goes by the name CrepChiefNotify has been notable within the UK. It wasn’t long ago that we posted about how the group was able to obtain over 3,000 units of the PlayStation 5 for resell.
Now the group has notified users online that they have been established within the United States and that they have managed to obtain over 1,000 Xbox Series X console platforms. This reseller group is also making note that they will continue to use bots in order to obtain units as they appear online through the use of bots. Meanwhile, it seems apparent that there is a flaw in how retailers allow consoles to be purchased online from these bots. For now, it looks like no changes are being made which means that we may see low stock for the foreseeable future.
