Sony stands by 10m PS3 full-year sales forecast
‘We shall not, we shall not be moved’
Despite experiencing a dip in sales, Sony is adamant that it’ll achieve its goal of selling 10m PlayStation 3s by the end of its current financial year.
Sony’s CFO, Nobuyuki Oneda, said in an earnings call late last week that “on a full-year basis, we believe we are on track to sell the 10m units that I said at the beginning of the year”. The firm’s financial year ends on 31 March.
Oneda’s comment came as he announced Q3 FY2009 - the three months to 31 December 2008 - PS3 sales of 4.46m units, a nine per cent drop from the 4.9m consoles it sold during the year-ago quarter.
The executive admitted that, compared to other platforms, PS3 sales are behind. However, he again stressed that it’s “not the case that we are not meeting the target”.
He claimed that steady reductions in the cost of PS3 hardware have helped Sony to remain profitable.
Conversely, PS3 software sales are looking good. Sales grew by 52 per cent to 40.8m unit in Q3, compared to the same period in Sony's 2008 fiscal year. ®
COMMENTS
Entry-price cost
The price *is* a factor when people get a 360 instead of a PS3. If you check out my local GameRush's price lists, you find that the XBox360 is cheaper than the Wii... but when you check out the consoles, you'll find that it is the 360 *Arcade* that has a low price tag. The really good 360's are around the current PS3's price tag $400? $500? and that is without adding XBox Live fees.
But the regular buyer doesn't check out the additional costs.
@Calagan
not sure what you mean by not being hacked?
Console or games? I know the games have been hacked....
Fair Enough
@Andy Worth: Cynic.. ;o)
Anyway, I think it's safe to say that the "My cock is bigger than your cock" brigade has moved on to something new. All formats are well established and liked by their respective users (Yes Andy, or Fanbois) ;o)
Not sure about the 10m target, but to paraphrase what AC@12.35 said: it can't be price as the same like-for-like kit across the 360 and PS3 is roughly the same cost. You can get by on cheaper options of kit, but personally it's down to the demogs of the products.
@Lee
I think it's inaccurate to classify the PS3 as a hardcore gamer-only machine. The titles available for download on PSN can keep most casual gamers happy (e.g Eden, Calling All Cars, Lumines Supernova, Fl0w, etc...). Moreover, folks who bought the PS3 for its Blueray/Media Center capabilities are usually way past the age of hardcore gaming.
On the other hand, EA, Activision and others will gradually abandon the Wii, as they did with the GameCube and once again Nintendo will have to keep his much-hyped baby on life support all by itself.
@AC 12:35
I think that anecdotally, what you have described is common. A number of my friends who got their kids a 360 said they did so because their kids friends had them and the kids wanted to go online and play their friends...
Also the recent price point of some of the 360 models at about £130 makes an attractive headline figure, not counting the little add-ons....
I think the PS3 might well hold out in the long run as it is a more versatile entertainment unit....
