The company’s Japanese offices “received a small number of
inquires (significantly less than one percent of systems sold) from
customers reporting small scratches to the outside edge of some
game disks after use in the Xbox game consoles,” according to its
statement.
It continued:
“While this is not a common occurrence, and
minor scratching is primarily a cosmetic issue that does not affect
performance, a positive customer experience is of the utmost
importance to Microsoft. Xbox Japan responded accordingly in its
statement offering to evaluate any Xbox system that a customer is
concerned about. If a system needs to be repaired or replaced for
any reason, Microsoft will do this immediately.”
Japan has a 30% share of the international games market and
success in the country is vital for Microsoft's gaming strategy.
However, according to figures quoted by FT.com, in its first three
days from launch, sales of the Xbox reached only 125,000 units. By
comparison, Sony’s PlayStation 2 sold 720,000 units in its first
three days two years ago.
Microsoft will launch the Xbox in Europe and Australia on 14th
March 2002. Worldwide, it hopes to sell between 4.5 million and 6
million units by the end of June. To this end, it is spending half
a billion dollars on advertising.
Sony yesterday announced that it will this month begin selling a
network adapter for PlayStation 2 owners in the US allowing them to
take gaming on-line. The adapter will cost $39.99.
