According to sales data from GfK-ChartTrack the Nintendo DS has sold 10.05 million units in the UK since its launch almost 5 years ago. That makes the handheld the biggest-selling games hardware in the UK, overtaking the PlayStation 2 which sold 10.02 million over nine years.
“With its inclusive, family friendly and fun nature, we’re very pleased Wii seems to have captured the imagination of over six million families across the UK and reached such a landmark sales figure in such a short space of time,” – David Yarnton, Nintendo UK MD
The Wii reached the six million milestone in the UK after almost 3 years on the market, this makes it the fastest-selling console in UK history.
UK shopping network MyVoucherCodes.co.uk has announced that the Xbox 360 has increased their lead in sales on the site to 3 to 1 over the PlayStation 3.
“A couple of months ago, little separated the two in terms of units being sold through our site, but November has seen a huge surge by Microsoft’s budget friendly console, backed by a stellar PR campaig… If sales stay at their current rate, the Xbox 360 will outsell Sony’s Blu-ray-technology console by 3-to-1, a marked defeat.” – Mark Pearson, MyVoucherCodes
There are currently nearly six million Wii consoles in homes across the UK (Data courtesy of Chart Track GfK, Annual Consoles By Format, Week 45 Year 2009. Week ending 7th November 2009. Copyright Chart Track GfK 2009.)
“Reinventing entertainment through, play, watch, connect and share – this is the vision that we have for Xbox 360 and today that vision is the reality for 10 million Xbox owners… European consumers are very discerning and demand a connected entertainment experience. That’s why we focused on providing content that is right and relevant for them and entertainment beyond just gaming to movies, music and social networking. We have delivered on this promise and next week will bring real innovation into the living room through instant streaming high definition movies, connecting with friends on Facebook and Twitter and a personalised music channel. Together, this represents a real shift in the way people are entertained every day.” – Chris Lewis, European Xbox boss
ChartTrack is reporting that the Wii experienced its best week of hardware sales this year in the UK for the week ending November 7th. According to the report the White Wii Sports Resort Bundle (which contains both Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort) had a 57% increase in sales for the week. Additionally, the debut of the Black Wii Sports Resort Pack was said to be strong, although no exact sales figures were released.
“PSPgo has performed in line with our expectations, driving 100 per cent incremental volume for the category and has benefited the broad PSP portfolio with PSP-3000 also enjoying a big lift… PSP software sales also having been a standout with both new releases GT PSP and FIFA 10 performing well.” – SCEE statement
Sony later clarified that sales of the PSP are up 120% from the previous week and that the PSP Go sold the same amount of units as the PSP 3000.
While on the surface it looks like the PSP Go is off to a strong start the numbers are a tad misleading. Until October 10th there is a deal in place where anyone who buys a PSP Go can download a free copy of Gran Turismo PSP. Additionally, in the UK consumers can also download another three games for free when they register the Go with Sony. When these deals expire I expect that sales of the Go will drop below the lower priced PSP 3000.
According to a report from MCV sales for the PlayStation 3 Slim amounted to 40,000 for the first week that it was on sale in the UK. MCV arrived at this number after Sony announced that the actual sales were 20% lower than the 50,000 estimated by the BBC.
“The sales increase is very impressive, making the PS3 the top selling hardware in Week 36. The Xbox 360, Wii and DS Lite all sold around the same amount last week – PS3 Slim outsold each of them by a ratio of three-to-one.”
“The longevity of this uplift very much depends on the time of year. The PS2 Slim was released in November, much closer to Christmas. We’ll have to wait and see how things work out for Sony this time.” – ChartTrack statement
CahrtTrack did not release specific numbers for the PS3 Slim’s launch in the UK but did say sales were up by 999% over the week before.
