Rich Fiscus
15 Jul 2008 10:55
The PS3 is gaining ground on the Xbox 360. Through last year Microsoft's console outsold Sony's. With a year's head start in sales, a lower price, and the success of Xbox Live there were many reasons to pick the Xbox 360 over the PS3. That's changed this year, with sales figures through May making the PS3 the number two seller of 2008, still trailing the Nintendo Wii.
The PS3 has had significant obstacles to overcome, including a head start of an entire year for the Xbox 360 and a significant price advantage for both the Microsoft and Nintendo consoles. They still trail the Xbox 360 in total sales, but the gap is closing.
If you believe Sony's Howard Stringer the competition with Microsoft is all that counts since he claims the Wii is "more of an expensive niche game device," and not a competitor for the PS3. He pointed out that the PS3 is "still the best way to buy a Blu-ray player.''
And he's certainly correct that it leads that market, but it seems foolish to believe he isn't disappoiinted about coming in second in the console market, especially considering that the video game market is growing while home video remains stagnant.
Besides that the Blu-ray market is still fairly new. In order to achieve the success Sony is betting on there will have to be low priced players dominating the market that the PS3 won't be able to compete with.