It looks like stores are saying things like they won’t have any more Xbox 360’s until Jan, Feb, or even March of next year are not totally on the level as Microsoft is shipping them out weekly. Major Nelson, is not the only source I heard this from, but he is the most qualified to talk about it as he the Xbox Live Director of Programming.
One thing I noticed was there is a large amount of incorrect information floating around regarding shipments of units. (One store (incorrectly) told me that ‘Microsoft won’t’ send us anymore until March.’) I double checked with the retail team, and while I can’t speak to each retail outlets specific distribution strategy, I can tell you that we (Xbox) have a weekly replenishment strategy. That means that we have new shipments of Xbox 360’s being sent out each week. If you hear that a store won’t get Xbox 360 from Microsoft until next year, you may want to gently remind your source that we in fact ARE shipping consoles out each week. The moral of the story is be patient and (once again) don’t believe all the rumors you hear.