BEATLEMANIA THE SEQUEL: AMAZON SOLD OUT OF MONO, STEREO BOXES

The Beatles stereo box and The Beatles in Mono box are both sold out and no longer available for pre-order at Amazon in the U.S. and Canada. More stereo sets will be made available, though probably not by the official release date of 09-09-09. But rampant rumors have spread that only 10,000 sets will be made of the limited-edition mono box; not surprisingly, hard-core fans are freaking out over the possibility that they may be out of luck in getting hold of the centerpiece of the most significant reissue program ever undertaken.

As of Monday morning, the mono box can still be preordered at Amazon in the U.K., but that could change at any moment. When we know more, we'll let you know, boys and girls.

It appears that price is no object when it comes to the Beatles. In the midst of a massive pullback in consumer spending, fans appear to be unfazed by the list prices on the box sets, $259 for the stereo collection and $299 for The Beatles in Mono.

What follows is the complete text of the announcement from Amazon in the U.S., including links:

Beatles Box Sets: Special Availability Message

We are currently sold out of the mono and stereo box sets, but we are always working to get more inventory. See our FAQ below for more information.

Why are the box sets currently sold out?
Collectible box sets take time to manufacture, and initial quantities must be determined well in advance of the product release date. In this case, demand has far outstripped initial supply. While we predicted that the box sets would be highly popular items, we had to work with the inventory allocated to us by the manufacturer.

We’ve been carefully tracking pre-orders, and we updated the product availability information on our site as soon as our initial allocations were depleted. We did this in order to ensure that we could fill all pre-orders without exceeding our allocation limits.

Will Amazon.com receive more box sets?
We will receive more stereo box sets. Sign up here to be notified as soon as they are available. While the mono box sets have a limited print run, we are always working to get more. Sign up here to be notified if we are able to secure any additional inventory of the mono box sets.

I’ve pre-ordered a box set. Will I receive it?
Yes, if you have pre-ordered a box set, you will receive it.

What happens next?
We will continue to provide you with up-to-the-minute information about the availability of the Beatles box sets on Amazon.com. As soon as we have more inventory available, we will include information in our Beatles Store and notify all customers who have signed up to receive information about the box sets.

In the meantime, visit our Beatles Store to find all things Beatles. Shop the remastered CDs and The Beatles: Rock Band, listen to song samples and our interview with Abbey Road sound engineers, and watch videos, including a mini-documentary on the making of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.