In a move that dovetails with recent promotional advertisements, stocks of some iPod touch models are beginning to run low according to one Wall Street analyst who noted that the announcement of the US$199 iPhone 3G will pressure Apple to alter its pricing on high-end media players in the next few months.

According to AppleInsider, Lehman Brothers analyst Ben Reitzes has observered that the 8GB iPod touch is now showing a small but significant delay of one to two business days for orders made from Apple's online store, while chain retailer Best Buy has seen reduced supplies of 16GB models at its own locations.

The slight shortages of the 8GB model are likely due to Apple's recent back-to-school promotion which offers a free iPod touch to students when purchased with a new Mac. As a result, demand may be surging ahead of supply.

Without the benefit of educational sales, though, Best Buy's stock changes are more difficult to explain. Reitzes offered no immediate prediction in his report but noted that Apple is under pressure to take action on the iPod to realign its prices in the wake of the iPhone 3G.

"We believe Apple will need to reposition the iPod touch product by September now that the iPhone acquisition price is lower," he says in the report. "We expect the iPod touch to experience significant cannibalization from lower-priced iPhones."

In spite of the shortage being generally perceived as a negative, it could serve as evidence of Apple's iPod sales faring better than expected. Current data points to iPod sales climbing by two percent year over year through early June where they were estimated to have dropped by the same amount, according to Reitzes.

The overall media player market grew 12% in the past year and was led by gains from Microsoft's Zune player as well as improvements from Coby's and Philips' products.

If you've seen this shortage or had an extra couple of days added to your iPod touch order, let us know over in the comments or forums.