Sega ship 650,000 units in Japan - retail supportive but investors sceptical

According to Japanese online news service, Bloomberg, Sega managed to ship 650,000 units of the 19,900 yen Dreamcast to retailers in the four days following the system's June 24 price drop.

Actual sell-through numbers will not be available for a week or two, but the 650,000 number does indicate that retailers are more excited about the system's chances for success in light of the new price drop. Prior to the price drop, Sega had managed to ship a million systems through to retailers by March of this year, but only 900,000 units had sold-through to customers. The system faced slow sales of no more than five thousand units per week, in contrast to brisk sales of the Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation; many questioned if retailers would manage to actually sell the stock of systems they had sitting on their shelves. The shipment of 650,000 units suggests that Sega may manage to finally break the magic one million sell-through mark.

In stark contrast to Sega's new-found success with Japanese retailers is the apparent disdain held by Sega's investors for the company. Sega's investors attended an annual shareholders' meeting in Japan this week, just one day after Sega's stocks plummeted to 1468 yen (the stock has risen slightly since). Shareholders came away unimpressed with Sega's assurances of the Dreamcast's success, despite Sega's kindness in giving out free keychain mini-games (this lovely gesture would certainly convince us to pledge our lives to Sega).

So who's the more correct party? On the one hand, Sega needs investor support in order to market the system appropriately and get retailer support. On the other hand, Sega needs retailer support in order to sell systems and gain investor support. So, would you like to be in Shoichiro Irimajiri's shoes today?

Courtesy of IGN.com