Ben-DutkaYou've already seen the November NPD numbers , but Bloomberg has expanded on the news a bit, reporting that the PlayStation 3 has snagged some crucial market share in the U.S. from their competitors.
According to the findings (based on NPD results), the PS3 controlled 21% of the market for the "latest generations of players" in this country last month, which is way up from 12% in October. The Wii, which still dominates, fell from 52% to 44% despite experiencing an 89% growth in hardware sales. The reason for this is simple- while Wii sales were up a bit, PS3 sales nearly quadrupled . Perhaps even more importantly, the PS3 outsold the Wii for the very first time in Japan last month; another big upswing for Sony that can be attributed – in part, at least – to the PS3 price cut in October. All three manufacturers had a great November, with shipments doubling for every system, but the interesting story centers on the PS3.
"The combination of the price cut and seasonal lift gave the PS3 the biggest October-to-November sales increase of any hardware platform," Anita Frazier, an analyst at NPD, wrote in an e-mailed statement.
Combined next-gen console sales in the U.S. hit 2.2 million units in November, more than twice the total take in October. The number will probably rise once again for December as the holidays hit in full force, and it's certainly encouraging news for all parties involved. Let's just hope Sony can maintain this momentum into 2008 and beyond.
