Nintendo says Wii shortages hurt planning

By Scott Hillis

REDMOND, Washington (Reuters) - Nintendo Co Ltd (7974.OS: Quote, Profile, Research) is having trouble planning for the coming months because of shortages of its Wii video game console, and the company is also seeing signs of higher-than-expected demand for its DS handheld device, a top U.S. executive said on Monday.

"The level of demand we are facing complicates all of our future business planning," Reggie Fils-Aime, president of Nintendo of America, told Reuters in an interview. "All of that becomes a much tougher exercise until we have supply and demand curves that intersect."

The DS has been the best-selling piece of gaming hardware this year, moving 1.5 million units in November, according to market research firm NPD.

"The DS continues to perform exceptionally well, with some retailers voicing concerns about DS inventory going into the holiday," Fils-Aime said.

Nintendo, which is striving to meet Wii demand more than a year after the machine first went on sale, was also trying to discourage the practice of bundling the consoles with extra games or accessories and selling it for a higher price.

A Wii by itself sells for $250 -- cheaper than Microsoft Corp's (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research) Xbox 360 and Sony Corp's (6758.T: Quote, Profile, Research) PlayStation 3 -- but some retailers have offered bundles priced for double that price.

"Retailers have already been given feedback that we are not big fans of that. We think it masks some of the price advantage we have versus our competition and, frankly, the consumer should decide what they want," Fils-Aime said.

Asked if Nintendo had threatened such retailers with fewer Wii shipments, Fils-Aime said only that the company carried a lot of weight as maker of one of the most highly sought items this holiday season.