I was checking my national newspaper this morning, and this article put a smile on my face.
By the time a mainstream source is aware of an issue like this, it can't be a good sign for those wishing to take advantage of the trend. My favorite quote was
"Most of the people in this lineup aren't the enthusiasts. They are the people who will exploit the enthusiasts". Too true, but so stereotypical that it might not pay off.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061117.gtgamers17/BNStory/Front
Outside they sat, huddled, bedraggled people in long lines, many waiting since Wednesday night in front of big-box electronics stores.
The aim was to be one of the first this morning to buy a new Sony PlayStation 3 video-game console. For most, this was a cold, calculated business decision.
True, some were excited about the improved graphics and how much more memory the console's 50-gigabyte Blu-ray disks can read in order to play the next generation of PlayStation games. But the lineups yesterday were hardly this year's cultural hysteria, 2006's Cabbage Patch doll or Tickle Me Elmo for big kids.
The talk along the line was less about the latest version of Grand Theft Auto or some other new game: It was about cold cash and who planned to turn around and sell their new PlayStations immediately.
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One man, who asked not to be identified, and who had been in line outside the Best Buy outlet near Toronto's downtown Eaton Centre since 8 p.m. Wednesday, figured that if he bought a new console, plus a couple of games for around $900, he could list them on eBay for nearly twice that.
That would be $800 to $900 profit for less than two days work.
(The store would be selling the 60-gigabyte version for $649 and the 20-gigabyte version for $549, plus tax.)
Then there was Ashton Gray, an 18-year-old student from Toronto who said he was holding a place in line for a friend -- for $200. He planned to use some of that to buy a new iPod.
"Most of the people in this lineup aren't the enthusiasts. They are the people who will exploit the enthusiasts," said Matthew Ballantyne, 17, also a student from Toronto. Despite sitting in line, he said he was more interested in buying a Nintendo Wii (pronounced "wee"), the other major new game console, which arrives in stores this weekend and will compete with both PlayStation 3 and Microsoft's Xbox.
But a conspicuous minority were waiting to buy a new PlayStation 3 for themselves.
Chris Jeffay, 25, said that the console's larger memory is reason enough for him to wait in line.
It was the first time he had ever done anything like this. He was number 72 on the store's list of waiting customers. But the talk always reverted to resale value.
"I've actually seen prices, at the beginning of the week on eBay, for $1,600 (U.S.)," said Jason Hepburn, 26, from Toronto, who arrived at 8 p.m. Wednesday and sat near the front of the line. "And right before I came out here, they were up to $2,000."
By the afternoon yesterday, still 16 hours before they could enter the store, 200 people or so were sitting with their backs to the outside wall, watching as news photographers and camera crews took their pictures.
At the front of the line, Ramon Keen, a 19-year-old Toronto student, joked about how corny he thought this kind of thing was and said he was sitting there for a friend.
The 50 or so who arrived Wednesday night brought tents. Early yesterday, just before the deluge of rain, security told everyone to take down their tents because they had started to take up much of the sidewalk.
By the afternoon, they were waiting for a ticket promised by the store, which would guarantee them the ability to purchase a console.
But that wouldn't be handed out until 6 o'clock this morning.
By the time a mainstream source is aware of an issue like this, it can't be a good sign for those wishing to take advantage of the trend. My favorite quote was
"Most of the people in this lineup aren't the enthusiasts. They are the people who will exploit the enthusiasts". Too true, but so stereotypical that it might not pay off.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061117.gtgamers17/BNStory/Front
Outside they sat, huddled, bedraggled people in long lines, many waiting since Wednesday night in front of big-box electronics stores.
The aim was to be one of the first this morning to buy a new Sony PlayStation 3 video-game console. For most, this was a cold, calculated business decision.
True, some were excited about the improved graphics and how much more memory the console's 50-gigabyte Blu-ray disks can read in order to play the next generation of PlayStation games. But the lineups yesterday were hardly this year's cultural hysteria, 2006's Cabbage Patch doll or Tickle Me Elmo for big kids.
The talk along the line was less about the latest version of Grand Theft Auto or some other new game: It was about cold cash and who planned to turn around and sell their new PlayStations immediately.
Related to this article
Latest Comments Comments
One man, who asked not to be identified, and who had been in line outside the Best Buy outlet near Toronto's downtown Eaton Centre since 8 p.m. Wednesday, figured that if he bought a new console, plus a couple of games for around $900, he could list them on eBay for nearly twice that.
That would be $800 to $900 profit for less than two days work.
(The store would be selling the 60-gigabyte version for $649 and the 20-gigabyte version for $549, plus tax.)
Then there was Ashton Gray, an 18-year-old student from Toronto who said he was holding a place in line for a friend -- for $200. He planned to use some of that to buy a new iPod.
"Most of the people in this lineup aren't the enthusiasts. They are the people who will exploit the enthusiasts," said Matthew Ballantyne, 17, also a student from Toronto. Despite sitting in line, he said he was more interested in buying a Nintendo Wii (pronounced "wee"), the other major new game console, which arrives in stores this weekend and will compete with both PlayStation 3 and Microsoft's Xbox.
But a conspicuous minority were waiting to buy a new PlayStation 3 for themselves.
Chris Jeffay, 25, said that the console's larger memory is reason enough for him to wait in line.
It was the first time he had ever done anything like this. He was number 72 on the store's list of waiting customers. But the talk always reverted to resale value.
"I've actually seen prices, at the beginning of the week on eBay, for $1,600 (U.S.)," said Jason Hepburn, 26, from Toronto, who arrived at 8 p.m. Wednesday and sat near the front of the line. "And right before I came out here, they were up to $2,000."
By the afternoon yesterday, still 16 hours before they could enter the store, 200 people or so were sitting with their backs to the outside wall, watching as news photographers and camera crews took their pictures.
At the front of the line, Ramon Keen, a 19-year-old Toronto student, joked about how corny he thought this kind of thing was and said he was sitting there for a friend.
The 50 or so who arrived Wednesday night brought tents. Early yesterday, just before the deluge of rain, security told everyone to take down their tents because they had started to take up much of the sidewalk.
By the afternoon, they were waiting for a ticket promised by the store, which would guarantee them the ability to purchase a console.
But that wouldn't be handed out until 6 o'clock this morning.
