Sony postponed release a couple of weeks to build up stock.
PlayStation Vita is due for Japanese release on December 17. Sound a bit late in the year for a major hardware release?
It turns out that Sony had originally planned a slightly early release.
In an interview with Weekly Famitsu this week, Sony Computer Entertainment president Hiroshi Kawano disclosed that the
system was originally planned for a December 3 release -- 12/3. They opted for the 17th, giving up up on the cute number
play along the way, in order to make sure they'd have enough hardware stock for the release.
Kawano assured that Sony is putting its full effort in preparing hardware stock for launch.
While Kawano did not give Famitsu a precise number for the system's shipments, he previously told Reuters that he expects
the first 500,000 systems to sell out quickly. The first 500,000 3G models include 100 hours of free 3G usage (Kawano's
conversation with Reuters following Tokyo Game Show).
Also in the Famitsu interview, Kawano emphasized that vita is a game machine first and foremost -- it's not a smartphone.
He said that Sony sided with NTT DoCoMo as the system's Japanese 3G provider because of the stability of NTT's network.
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