Sony’s success in getting plenty of PlayStation 3 consoles ready for tomorrow’s European launch seems to have nipped any potential online auction bloodbath in the bud.

Spong reports that the number of PS3 pre-orders up on eBay is currently just 223, and that not a single console is going for more than its retail price of GBP425. The majority of them, which have around nine hours left until the end of auction, are reaching GBP350 or below.

Spong stated: “It will be interesting to see what occurs post the official midnight launch. The situation in the US and Japan last year saw US eBay flooded with upwards of 5,000 PS3s within hours of launch. Thanks to stock shortages the console was selling for around USD2,500, or four times the retail price.

“A contact in retail told us that their shop will receive 96 PS3s, and 50 of these will be available for punters to buy without pre-order. In comparison, the same retailer received 33 Wiis upon launch and had around 100 pre-orders. Such abundance of PS3 supply will make turning a profit on the console tricky for scalpers.”