14 DAY TRIAL // Oculus VR has suspended sales of its virtual reality headset, the Oculus Rift, in China, because people there are apparently reselling it like crazy, which goes against the company's policy.
The company has recently started shipping the latest version of its development kit, the DK2, to software and hardware developers all around the world, including China. The DK2 is a prototype meant for developers to toy around and make content for, and is not intended for consumers, as it is still an in-development product.
But after the company witnessed what it could only describe as "extreme" reseller purchases, it has decided to halt sales to China.
"Yes, it is a bummer that we've had to suspend sales in China due to extreme reseller purchases.We need to make sure that we are doing what we can to make sure that resellers that are looking to flip our product for a profit are not taking stock away from legitimate developer purchases globally," a representative from Oculus VR explains on the appropriate Reddit thread.
He has stated that the Oculus is currently looking into alternative ways to make sure that the Rift development kits are getting to legitimate developers in China, and that the company is kindly asking excited consumers to wait for the final, consumer-grade product.
If you're curious about finding out just how bad the actual situation was, you need only look down in the same thread, where the representative is asked the same question, to which he replies, "We were forced to suspend an entire country from purchasing. I'll let you put two and two together."
The Oculus Rift DK2 is currently going for $350 / €258, without any duty or VAT/GST included, and can be ordered from the Oculus VR website, only requiring to accept an agreement that states that you understand that the hardware is intended for developers and is not a consumer product.
The company expects some 10k new units to reach developers' hands this July, and new orders to begin shipping sometime in September 2014. There is still no official word on the final release of the consumer version, although it was previously alluded that the device would hit shelves before the end of the year.
For now, the company has not made any specifications about the upcoming hardware public, and has not revealed any details regarding the consumer version's pricing yet.
The Oculus Rift's main competitor seems to be Sony's very own virtual reality solution, titled Project Morpheus, but the headset will only be compatible with the PlayStation 4 console.