July NPD

[Tiko7523]

Quote: Originally Posted by bkfount

lol, people have never bought into the value based argument for the ps3...ever. PS3 sales look like this even with the latest Killzone 2 and MGS4 bundle. But, it's like they picked that chart off a website or something, like who knew the psp only works with the ps3? It's blatantly obvious Sony needs to get the price down for it to pick up in sales. It'll never pass the 360 in the US, but perception goes a long way.

Ps3 is like minding it's own business and meeting the expections and surpassing it like the person said at e3 for them they beat 10 mill which they targeted back then. I understand that article a lot of great games coming to the ps3 this year and next but they need a price drop and they need to advertise it after they do that. I for one owning both can't wait for the exclusives on ps3 for the 360 some are coming but not as Many as Sony .

Sony needs better marketing.

[TIm]

Quote: Originally Posted by bkfount

lol, people have never bought into the value based argument for the ps3...ever. PS3 sales look like this even with the latest Killzone 2 and MGS4 bundle. But, it's like they picked that chart off a website or something, like who knew the psp only works with the ps3? It's blatantly obvious Sony needs to get the price down for it to pick up in sales. It'll never pass the 360 in the US, but perception goes a long way.

You are right... Sony tries to drive the Ps3 as a entertainment hub...Well it really is.. I think everyone knows this. But in todays economy, People can't afford that much...Wake up Sony...This company is sooo arrogant Arrrghh

[Spectre]

Quote: Originally Posted by pfunk880

Yeah, from a quick Google search it looks like they were losing money per unit in 2005 and turned that around by the end of '06. On the other, hand, of course, you have to wonder how much the RROD and related problems are costing them.

They smartly put all the RRod expenses into one fiscal quarter- like allocated 1 billion or so just for that one quarter. Therefore, the costs of RRod are already allocated. It was a pretty wise decision, given the circumstances. If they kept putting in RRod costs into each quarter, it would have cut into their profits. So they decided to just take a massive hit one quarter. Now the Xbox division is experiencing pretty consistent profitability (please, don't show me a 2005 link about profitability, its hilarious). Nintendo is also making a hefty amount on each system sold. Both Nintendo and MS are more easily able to absorb a price cut.

LOL at the Sony Chart- interoperability with the PSP? Really? I always thought my Xbox and Wii would work with my Sony PSP... damn! Those PR guys are brilliant.

[CaptainZombie]

Quote: Originally Posted by Tiko7523

Ps3 is like minding it's own business and meeting the expections and surpassing it like the person said at e3 for them they beat 10 mill which they targeted back then. I understand that article a lot of great games coming to the ps3 this year and next but they need a price drop and they need to advertise it after they do that. I for one owning both can't wait for the exclusives on ps3 for the 360 some are coming but not as Many as Sony . Sony needs better marketing.

It really makes you wonder based off of the comments you just made that Sony only cares on meeting their own goals and other than that don't care about what is going on outside their world. If they don't lower the price to $299 or announce they are next week, I think Sony will be in some trouble. Granted the industry was down as a whole last month, it is still bad with the numbers the PS3 pulled in which was close to PS2 numbers.

Quote: Originally Posted by GearsX8

It really makes you wonder based off of the comments you just made that Sony only cares on meeting their own goals and other than that don't care about what is going on outside their world. If they don't lower the price to $299 or announce they are next week, I think Sony will be in some trouble. Granted the industry was down as a whole last month, it is still bad with the numbers the PS3 pulled in which was close to PS2 numbers.

With this new Elite price drop, I would certainly think Sony better start really considering doing the same.

[Flawless]

Microsoft spin:

NPD: Xbox 360 is "industry's sole bright spot," says Microsoft

Quote:

Representatives from Microsoft's Xbox division have released an official reaction to the NPD Group's videogame sales data for July of 2009, calling the Xbox 360's hardware growth the "industry's sole bright spot" in 2009. According to the statement, the Xbox 360 is the only console to show growth in 2009, with a 17 per cent increase in sales over the same seven-month period in 2008. "Amid a tough economic climate, Xbox 360 is the only home console showing growth in the US this year, offering wallet-watching consumers the best value with a USD 199 starting price, the broadest selection of games for everyone, and innovative social and entertainment experiences they can’t get anywhere else," said Microsoft. Microsoft also reported continued growth in online play amongst its Xbox Live subscribers, and that EA's Battlefield: 1943 "shattered the record for first-day and first-week downloads" in its July debut.

No comment from Nintendo yet, but could probably be summarized with, "Yo, our stuff prints money, and while the printing may have slowed a little, you best believe we still be rolling large."

[Flawless]

Video Game Sales Expected to be Down 14% in August

Quote:

The last five months haven't been so good for the U.S. video game industry, and if the analysts are right we'll soon be adding a sixth month to the list. In advance of the August NPD data (expected this Thursday) Michael Pachter of Wedbush Morgan Securities and Jesse Divnich of EEDAR have both forecast a decline of 14%. Pachter believes total software sales will come in at $475 million. Sales were likely driven by Electronic Arts’ Madden NFL 10 (PS3, Wii, PS2, 360, PSP) Eidos’ Batman: Arkham Asylum (360, PS3, PC), and Activison’s Wolfenstein (360, PS3, PC), along with continued strong sales of Nintendo’s Wii Sports Resort and Electronic Arts’ Fight Night Round 4. Hardware sales are expected to drop 24% with the DS still leading the pack selling 490,000 units. Pachter sees the Wii selling 240,000 units, the Xbox 360 selling 205,000 units and the PS3 160,000 units. Of course, the PS3 numbers won't reflect the big price drop and new slim model until the following month. It's also worth noting that the Wii is expected to see the largest decline at 47%, suggesting once again the need for a price cut. "With the core PS3 and Xbox 360 models priced only $50 higher than the Wii, we expect year-over-year sales of Wii hardware to continue their annual declines until the company either changes its bundle or lowers price. The decrease in Wii unit sales has averaged over 50% vs. last year in the last two months," said Pachter. Although August looks rough, it should be the last of the consecutive down months finally, Pachter and Divnich agree. "Looking ahead into September, EEDAR’s Analyst Services Division is certain the industry will return to positive comps. In fact, new releases alone will likely account for over $400 million in revenue," said Divnich. "Back catalog (or non-new release revenue) should account for at least $300 million, which would put September up at least 14% over last year. October is currently expected to be flat, with November and December landing in the -5% to +5% range." "We believe that August will mark the last month of negative double-digit sales declines, and that the inflection point occurred in late August, driven in part by easing comparisons, strong releases late in the month, and hardware price cuts in the last week of the month," said Pachter. "In contrast to July, which suffered from a difficult comparison (+41%), the comparisons to last year are relatively easy in August (+13%) and very easy in September (-6%). Further, the game release schedule improved substantially last month, with expected contribution from G.I. Joe, Wolfenstein and Batman Arkham Asylum. In September, we expect new releases, The Beatles: Rock Band, Halo ODST, Need for Speed: Shift, Guitar Hero 5 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 to drive positive sales growth well into the double-digits. As a result, we believe share prices will recover as investor concerns abate." The trends are looking even better for 2010 too. "EEDAR expects revenue for the first half of 2010 to be up 14% over 2009. A primary reason for this is the number of key titles being moved out of calendar year 2009 as well as additional AAA titles planned for the first half of 2010 (Red Dead Redemption, Bioshock 2, Max Payne 3, and God of War III)," Divnich noted.