Sony – Japanese PS3 shipment will not meet target date

Only 80,000 units to make November 11th launch.

Sony has missed its intended shipment figures for the Japanese launch of the PlayStation 3.

The amount of units available on November 11th has fallen to 80,000, one-fifth less than the previously promised 100,000 consoles, according to a report in the Nikkei Keizai Shimbun.

The report sites component shortages as the cause of the reduction, the same problem that has delayed the launch of the console in Europe until March.

Last week doubts as to the amount of units available for the US launch came in to question, with SCEA’s co-chairman Jack Tretton admitting shipment figures were, "more of a target" rather than written in stone.

The PlayStation 3 is due to launch on November 11th in Japan and November 17th in North America.