PS3 Doesn't have Slow Sales

[StylinRed]

Pretty interesting read

http://www.smgamers.com/?p=948

THE MYTH OF SLOW PS3 SALES
MONDAY, AUGUST 24, 2009
By Kyle Kulyk

With Sony’s recent announcement of a revamped and cheaper PS3 model, many technology writers and video game industry journalists have taken this opportunity to examine the potential impact of Sony’s latest Playstation iteration on the gaming industry. The Financial Times wrote in an article published Aug 19th under their technology section “The high-spec – and high-price – PS3 has struggled against competitors. It has sold 24m units, compared with about 30m Microsoft Xbox360s and 50m-plus Nintendo Wiis.”

This is a lie.

While there is no denying the success Nintendo has had this console generation with their Wii games console, the false notion that Sony’s Playstation 3 console is somehow struggling against its main competitor, Microsoft’s Xbox 360, is parroted over and over again in the writings of the US dominated game media. This idea that somehow the PS3 is struggling versus the Xbox 360 is not only incorrect, but it’s so easily dispelled by a liberal dosing of sales data that it makes one wonder if members of the games media have any business writing about the videogame industry at all when their ability to fact check is so obviously in question. Since the PS3’s worldwide launch at the start of 2007, data released from both Microsoft and Sony prove that the PS3 has outsold the Xbox 360 in the 2 ½ years since it’s launch by over a million consoles.

According to Sony and Microsoft sales data released each quarter, the Microsoft 360 managed to build an 8.6 million console lead before the Playstation 3 launched worldwide in early 2007.

For the calendar year 2007, the PS3 dominated the 360 selling 8.85 million consoles to the 360’s 7.3 million.

In 2008 the PS3’s dominance continued over the 360 for the first 3 quarters, outselling the 360 by a hefty 6.32 million consoles to 4.8 million consoles. In September of 2008, Microsoft drastically slashed the price of the 360 making their 360 Arcade offering the cheapest next gen console on the market and sparking a sales comeback over the holiday season during a period of slowing consumer spending due to the pressures related to worldwide recession. 2008 ended in a dead heat, 10.78 million PS3’s to 10.8 million 360’s.

So far for the first half of 2009 consumer spending has remained slow however the PS3 has still managed to stay neck and neck with the 360 despite being double the price. 2.71 million PS3’s sold versus 2.9 million 360’s, a difference of only 190,000 and with a recent price cut and new PS3 Slim set to shake things up leading into the 2009 holiday season, certainly this does not paint the picture of a console struggling to keep up with its rival who just posted their worst sales quarter in 2 years.

So how can so many in the games media be completely oblivious when it comes to these facts? Simply enter a search into Google for “slow PS3 sales” and you’ll find a flood of hand wringing regarding the PS3’s slow start, slowing PS3 sales growth, the prospect of Sony ditching the PS3 altogether and a parade of “Why the Playstation is Doomed,” articles.

Now, repeat the Google experiment with “slow Xbox 360 sales.” The difference is astounding. Despite the odd article regarding the 360’s inability to crack the Japanese markets, the outsold Xbox 360 simply isn’t under the same media scrutiny. From Kotaku’s “Sony Responds to Reports of Lethargic PS3 Sales” type articles to Play.tm reporting on “PS3 Hardware sales still slow,” article after article exists, examining Sony’s imagined plight while Sony themselves, when asked to comment on slow sales continue to denounce the idea that there is anything wrong in the first place. Meanwhile it becomes abundantly clear looking at the 360 sales numbers that if any console has struggled to remain competitive, it’s Microsoft’s faulty hardware plagued Xbox 360.

One could possibly forgive this type of negative journalism if critical articles were equal across the board, but that’s simply not the case. Despite the 360 being matched and outsold since the PS3 launched, nowhere will you find articles examining slow Xbox 360 sales. CNET isn’t writing articles speculating on ways that Microsoft can save the Xbox 360. ABC news isn’t reporting on how Natal could potentially boost slumping 360 sales. Forbes and the Financial Times aren’t writing articles about how the 360 is struggling to keep up since the PS3 launched.

So, why is that?

It might simply be a matter of demographics. This current generation, Nintendo’s Wii has dominated, but let’s look at the Wii’s demographics. It’s comes as no surprise to those that follow the industry that gamers who play on the Wii aren’t what is typically described as “hardcore” gamers. According to data revealed at last years Electronic Gaming Summit, the majority of Wii owners play between 1-2 hours a week. Game sales show games aimed at the “hardcore” game market on the Wii tend to perform poorly and that’s a problem for gaming media as it’s the hardcore gamers that buy magazines and surf online for the latest game information. Your average Wii owner who plays Wii Sports and might own Sonic and Mario Olympics or Wii Fit isn’t surfing the internet for the latest game information. They simply aren’t picking up games magazines looking for info on the next Wii Fit titles, so there’s no money to be made there.

So next up is the 360 crowd who still outnumber PS3 owners due to the 360 launching a year earlier than the PS3. Not only do 360 owners outnumber PS3 owners, but 60% of 360’s sold worldwide are sold in the US, home to the majority of the worlds videogame meida outlets. 360 fans love their Halo, can’t get enough information regarding the next Gears of War. They flood internet games sites and snatch up copies of their favorite games magazines that offer new glimpses of soon to be released titles that appeal to them. There are also, like sports fans, often very loyal to their team and the game media knows this. Not only do articles that offer insight into their favorite games attract attention but negative articles critical of the other teams draw attention as well. So far 360 fans have simply outnumbered PS3 owners, and a game media eager to draw eyeballs to their websites and advertisers have been quick to give them what they want, and they want the scent of their enemies blood.

So, using the old adage “If it bleeds, it leads,” game media has been quick to pick up and perpetuate the false fall of the Playstation 3. It’s what the readers seem to want and many games site seem unwilling to let a little thing like facts stop them from writing another speculative piece on “Why the PS3 is failing.” But what will happen to a games media that has become fat off 360 fans when the 360 starts its inevitable decline? What will happen if Sony fans are suddenly in the driver’s seat as their number swell? Will the game media be quick to hop off the 360 bandwagon and toast the 360’s demise to the delight of Sony’s PS3 fans, will they continue to bash Sony’s offering with complete disregard for the facts of the videogame biz or will they revert back to the days when the games media reported on actual news without corporate bias or pandering to one specific audience?

Personally, this author hopes it’s the latter.

[ddr]

if the failure rates were lower and u couldn't mod the 360, its sales would b even lower

i have both, it's really stupid why ppl would argue which one is better. they both certain console-specific titles that are awesome.

[urrh]

personally i couldn't care less which system sells better. it doesn't benefit me in anyway.
but now that the ps3 is more affordable, i'll probably pick one up sometime down the line

[ienhz]

ok, i think i will trust this anonymous man from some unknown website with no real sources other than what he claims are "sales data from microsoft and sony" over real news sources like reuters, cnn, or even ign. guarantee you this article was written to drive web traffic.

[StylinRed]

well thats just it though... the numbers show what he's saying but those news outlets still claim the ps3 to be waaay behind the xbox

The numbers are roughly 30million units for xbox360 and 24million for PS3
The PS3 coming out later than the xbox and
xbox with a estimated 54% failure rate (which microsoft addressed "we're improving" and did not refute the survey)

[ienhz]

depends which news outlets you're talking about. the 360 pretty much dominates north america (compared to ps3) but worldwide it's probably a bit closer.

[SkinnyPupp]

This is so beyond pointless it's not even funny.

Want to know what the sales figures are? Use the market research source the hardware companies themselves use - NPD

[StylinRed]

^^^ npd is north america only i thought

[SkinnyPupp]

There's an aggregate version that combines NA with Europe and Japan, but they don't release those numbers publicly.

But then you have to decide - do you want to compare the worldwide sales figures, or just one region? Lumping everything all together makes the numbers pretty meaningless.

[asian_XL]

Originally Posted by urrh

personally i couldn't care less which system sells better. it doesn't benefit me in anyway.

QFT, and I only buy console that can be modded or play pirated games

1st gen Nintendo.
Super Nintendo.
Game Boy
PS1
PS2
xbox360
NDS

[SkinnyPupp]

That's pretty sad

[underscore]

^ that's really sad.

Originally Posted by StylinRed

well thats just it though... the numbers show what he's saying but those news outlets still claim the ps3 to be waaay behind the xbox

The numbers are roughly 30million units for xbox360 and 24million for PS3
The PS3 coming out later than the xbox and
xbox with a estimated 54% failure rate (which microsoft addressed "we're improving" and did not refute the survey)

exactly. plus keep in mind many people didn't even know their 360 was under an extended warranty and threw it out and bought a new one. I wonder how many of them are sitting in landfills

[CaRcuS]

Originally Posted by StylinRed

xbox with a estimated 54% failure rate (which microsoft addressed "we're improving" and did not refute the survey)

that settles the score between which system is better.. period!

[hotjoint]

PS3 FTW

[ienhz]

console wars are for homos, no offense

[SlySi]

Originally Posted by ienhz

console wars are for homos, no offense

Yup.. Its so ghey.
Xbox rocks for its games.
PS3 rocks for its games.. plus free wifi, free online gaming, with blu ray.

Some games play better depending on which console.



Support the programmers.. buy games...

[wouwou]

personally I don't give a fuck who wins, as I own all 3.

that being said, it is REALLY FUN to piss off fanboys of a certain console to start an argument to kill my boring work hours lol.

I haven't turned on my Wii for the past 8 months
Plays Magic the Gathering on XBLA only for the 360 right now,
and owns 0 games but maybe 50 Blurays for PS3.

except Wii, the other 2 serve me well for what I bought them for. Now that PS3 has a price-drop and better ventilation, I might get another one because my 40 G is FUCKING LOUD

[aznrsx1979]

It's all personal choice anyway. I've got the Wii and PS3. They handle my gaming and entertainment needs. The Wii is great when with groups of friends and what not. The PS3 I end up using more for the Blue-ray movies and most of the games I like are just on PS3 anyway. Couldn't really care less anyway if the PS3 can't be modded.

The 2 major reasons I won't touch a 360 are that there aren't any games that interest me that I can't get on the PS3 anyway and everyone I know that has a 360 has had to get there's fixed at least once. In some cases 3-4 times in a year. What's the point if they break down so often.

[Jmac]

Originally Posted by underscore

^ that's really sad.



exactly. plus keep in mind many people didn't even know their 360 was under an extended warranty and threw it out and bought a new one. I wonder how many of them are sitting in landfills

While I don't know anyone who has thrown out a 360 because they thought it wasn't under warranty, I do know a few dozen people who have an XBOX 360 Pro and an XBOX 360 Arcade because their 360 Pro died and they didn't want to be w/o one for a month or more. Then they just kept the Arcade just in case it failed again (which, in several cases, it did). I can't say I know anyone who has more than 1 PS3 (and I only know 1 person who has had one fail on them).

[twitchyzero]

actually it does matter who's selling the best
more gaming development support for the more successful one
Wii is way ahead of the other 2 because it has a much larger audience

[underscore]

^ I don't see anywhere near the kind of games that are coming out for the PS3 and 360 coming out for the Wii. Albeit I don't really pay much attention.

Originally Posted by aznrsx1979

It's all personal choice anyway. I've got the Wii and PS3. They handle my gaming and entertainment needs. The Wii is great when with groups of friends and what not. The PS3 I end up using more for the Blue-ray movies and most of the games I like are just on PS3 anyway. Couldn't really care less anyway if the PS3 can't be modded.

The 2 major reasons I won't touch a 360 are that there aren't any games that interest me that I can't get on the PS3 anyway and everyone I know that has a 360 has had to get there's fixed at least once. In some cases 3-4 times in a year. What's the point if they break down so often.

My thoughts exactly. Although in some ways, the PS3 can/could be modded more, what with Linux support and such. I think because they were legal mods they get less interest. I really don't get the point of either a) modding a 360 illegally and waiting to get banned from Live or b) owning 2 so you can play free games? You have to pay $300 min + the cost of the mod on top of your original 360 to play "free" games. That doesn't sound so free to me.

Originally Posted by Jmac

While I don't know anyone who has thrown out a 360 because they thought it wasn't under warranty, I do know a few dozen people who have an XBOX 360 Pro and an XBOX 360 Arcade because their 360 Pro died and they didn't want to be w/o one for a month or more. Then they just kept the Arcade just in case it failed again (which, in several cases, it did). I can't say I know anyone who has more than 1 PS3 (and I only know 1 person who has had one fail on them).

I know of a couple who have, I was rather confused cause either it was under warranty or I coulda fixed it. Oh well. What I find the funniest is the one guy I know who has been through 5 360's, and finally sold his off after MS fixed it, only to buy another (an Elite this time) and have it RRoD. What a joke. I don't mean to be a fanboy but how the hell can people keep buying a console with a 54% fail rate?

[wouwou]

^I have to point out, that after burning 6 360 games for the modded console, you have 100% return on your initial investment, so I guess in that sense it is "free".

[underscore]

If you honestly play all 6 of those games, and you couldn't find them used/on sale then maybe. But in reality most people only play a couple games, all of which can be picked up used for cheap.

[ienhz]

Originally Posted by underscore

^ I don't see anywhere near the kind of games that are coming out for the PS3 and 360 coming out for the Wii. Albeit I don't really pay much attention.



My thoughts exactly. Although in some ways, the PS3 can/could be modded more, what with Linux support and such. I think because they were legal mods they get less interest. I really don't get the point of either a) modding a 360 illegally and waiting to get banned from Live or b) owning 2 so you can play free games? You have to pay $300 min + the cost of the mod on top of your original 360 to play "free" games. That doesn't sound so free to me.



I know of a couple who have, I was rather confused cause either it was under warranty or I coulda fixed it. Oh well. What I find the funniest is the one guy I know who has been through 5 360's, and finally sold his off after MS fixed it, only to buy another (an Elite this time) and have it RRoD. What a joke. I don't mean to be a fanboy but how the hell can people keep buying a console with a 54% fail rate?

my 360 has been modded for over a year and i haven't been banned from live. it's so easy now to properly stealth all your games, you'd have to be an idiot to get banned nowadays. if you're careful and don't play games 3 weeks before release, you'll be safe. truthfully, i did buy the 360 because it can be modded but don't tell me you've never downloaded a single mp3 or movie before. it has saved me tons of money on games i play once and never touch again.

as for the rrod thing, i'm pretty sure it has been fixed ever since the switch to 65nm. mine was manufactured in feb 08 and it hasn't shown any signs of breaking down. the new models are more susceptible to the E74 error but that is much rarer than the RRoD was. the new jasper models released in 2009 should be problem-free (yeah, pretty stupid how it took them THIS long to finally perfect the design)

[underscore]

Originally Posted by ienhz

my 360 has been modded for over a year and i haven't been banned from live. it's so easy now to properly stealth all your games, you'd have to be an idiot to get banned nowadays. if you're careful and don't play games 3 weeks before release, you'll be safe. truthfully, i did buy the 360 because it can be modded but don't tell me you've never downloaded a single mp3 or movie before. it has saved me tons of money on games i play once and never touch again.

as for the rrod thing, i'm pretty sure it has been fixed ever since the switch to 65nm. mine was manufactured in feb 08 and it hasn't shown any signs of breaking down. the new models are more susceptible to the E74 error but that is much rarer than the RRoD was. the new jasper models released in 2009 should be problem-free (yeah, pretty stupid how it took them THIS long to finally perfect the design)

Yes but game sales are the only way a game makes money. Movies and music make a lot of money aside from sales. It does make sense for games that you only play once and decide you don't like but if you're playing it again and again and again you should buy it IMO. I've seen lots of used games for $15-20.

Idk about the specific technologies used in each batch of consoles but I can tell you that as I am typing this there is an Elite sitting beside me, built a little over a year ago, with 3 flashing red lights and a sub error 0110 (RAM). And I know there can be a lot of causes for the E74 but a good number have been fixed with the same technique as an RRoD. Sounds like MS just put a new code on almost the same error