Palm Pre shortage: supply chain slip-up or retail fairy tale?

Hesse told an industry conference audience earlier this week that he expected shortages "for a while" when the Pre launches at retail 6 June 2009, according to a Dow Jones report. He credited early demand for the company's decision to forgo a major advertising campaign focused on the upcoming Palm touchscreen smartphone.

That news, coupled with a Thursday blog post on the Boy Genius Report - which cited Best Buy and Radio Shack sources as saying most of their stores may be getting a grand total of two to four Pre's per outlet nationwide - has analysts and tech blogosphere denizens wondering if Sprint and Hesse, along with Palm, are playing a dangerous supply-and-demand game. Palm is first out of the gate in what is expected to be a very competitive smartphone season.

Earlier this week, Sprint and Palm announced the price and launch date for the Pre: US$199 (after a $100 rebate) on 6 June, just days before Apple begins its Worldwide Developers Conference, where it may take the wraps off of a new iPhone model.

A Sprint spokesperson would not address questions about possible supply chain or production problems, but he did say that the company is "excited" by the response to the new smartphone.

"It is likely that initially we won't be able to keep up with the demand for the device," Mark Elliott, Sprint communications manager for wireless devices, told the E-Commerce Times. "If that occurs, we will work diligently to ensure that everyone who wants a Pre can get one as soon as possible."

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