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Major Australian retailers won't stock Vita at launch

Target, Big W and K-Mart back away, Sony focuses on specialist retailers

Three of Australia's leading retailers will not stock the PlayStation Vita at launch, Kotaku reports.

Target, Big W and K-Mart are all backing away from Sony's handheld, though Target and Big W confirmed via e-mail that they would consider stocking the product "at a later date."

However, K-Mart stated that it has no plans to sell the Vita at all, dictated by a broader to strategy to move away from expensive items and towards cheaper products.

As a result, the Vita will be chiefly available through specialist stores, and there is concern that consumers looking for a more competitive price from department stores will be frustrated.

However, Sony is resolute that it fits with an underlying strategy to aim the Vita at a core audience.

"For the launch of PlayStation Vita in Australia, with the specific target market being the active gamer, we have chosen to launch the console with a focused retail channel strategy across national specialist game and specialist technology retailers," Sony said in a statement.

"There is a long term vision for our revolutionary new hand-held platform, in the same way we had a long term vision for PS3, and anticipate that in line with this we will broaden channel distribution in the future."

With a week to go until launch, Sony has also dropped the retail price of the 3G Vita by $30 [Australian] to $419.95. The Wi-fi Vita will remain at $349.95.

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Matthew Handrahan

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Matthew Handrahan joined GamesIndustry in 2011, bringing long-form feature-writing experience to the team as well as a deep understanding of the video game development business. He previously spent more than five years at award-winning magazine gamesTM.

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