Legion of Angels News Archive

U.S. sales of video-game consoles and software jumped 28 percent last month compared to last year, according to market researcher NPD Group. Nintendo’s DS portable and Wii remained the most popular systems.

For hardware, that means nearly $450 million in July purchases, a 17 percent increase compared to the same time last year. The top-selling DS moved about 608,000 units, with the Wii second at about 555,000.

PS 2 Still Popular

The next four places showed small differences, with third-place Sony’s PlayStation 3 at 225,000, its PlayStation Portable in fourth with 222,000, and Microsoft’s Xbox 360 fifth with 205,000. The PlayStation 2, now entering late middle age eight years after its release, still sold about 155,000 for sixth place.

In total sales, the Wii is in first place, with about 13.5 million sold in North America and about 31 million worldwide. The Xbox 360 is in second place, with 12 million U.S. sales and 20 million worldwide, and the PS3 takes third with 5.5 million U.S. and 15 million worldwide.

Game software sales in the U.S. totaled $591 million, an increase of 41 percent over last year. The top two games were Electronic Arts’ NCAA Football 09 for the Xbox, with 397,000 sold, and Nintendo’s Wii Fit, with about 370,000. Guitar Hero: On Tour for the DS sold 309,000 for third place, and Wii Play was fourth with 284,000.

The remaining games in the top 10 were, in order, NCAA Football for the PS3, Soulcalibur IV for the Xbox 360, Mario Kart for the Wii, Rock Band Special Edition Bundle for the Wii, Soulcalibur IV for the PS3, and Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution for the Xbox 360.

‘Years’ for Sony to Catch Microsoft

Mike Goodman, an analyst with industry research firm Yankee Group, said it is “pretty safe to assume that Nintendo will continue to lead the way for the foreseeable future.” The more interesting development, he added, is the continuing monthly battle between the PS3 and the Xbox 360, which in the U.S. is “still very close.”

In the latest U.S. figures, he noted, “Sony has managed to inch ahead of Microsoft,” but the Xbox 360 still leads in total sales since launch. “At this pace,” Goodman said, “it will take Sony years to catch up with Microsoft.”

Goodman said the PS3’s built-in Blu-ray high-definition DVD player is “nice to have,” but probably “not a must-have” that would sway buyers. The inclusion of Blu-ray in the PS3 delayed the release of the console, but became a possible asset after the recent Blu-ray triumph in the high-definition format war with HD DVD.

Goodman noted the monthly competition might be in for a shake-up if a rumored big price-cut for the Xbox 360 takes place this fall. If, he said, Microsoft were to drop $100 from the console price, the dynamic of the monthly sales race could dramatically shift once again.

Source — Yahoo!

NEW YORK (Fortune) – The new Apple iPhone went on sale Friday morning, but early reports of software problems overshadowed the debut of the faster, cheaper device.

As eager buyers flocked to Apple stores, news sites chronicled reports that Apple’s iTunes store was struggling with a massive outage that prevented buyers from activating their phones.

Apple’s new iPhone is built on third-generation, or 3G, technology that is speedier than the original iPhone’s network.

As Fortune.com first reported, AT&T, the iPhone’s exclusive carrier in the United States, cut the price of the iPhone in half: an 8-GB model sells for $199, or $200 less than the original iPhone. A 16-GB version costs $299.

The Apple Store on New York City’s tony Fifth Avenue, which drew a crowd of 150 people just after 5:00 a.m. ET, was moving customers through the line in about 10 minutes per customer when the doors opened at 8:00 a.m., according to Fortune’s Philip Elmer-DeWitt.

High expectations

But problems soon appeared. Elmer-DeWitt, who live-blogged from the store, was one of the first to report difficulty setting up his new phone. Eventually he was told, along with other customers, to go home and try to activate his device later.

Elmer-DeWitt was able to get his phone to work about three hours after his purchase. By early afternoon, there were more anecdotal reports online of users completing the activation process.

The system crash affected buyers throughout the 21countries where the new iPhone debuted Friday. Owners of the original iPhone and the iPod touch looking to upgrade their software were also hobbled by the breakdown.

The iTunes outage wasn’t the only glitch Apple customers encountered Friday. Users attempting to sign up for MobileMe, which synchs e-mail and other data across Mac devices, also experienced technical problems, according to the Associated Press. Apple began offering the $99-a-year service Friday.

The iPhone 3G rollout was in stark contrast to last year’s debut, when hordes of eager buyers camped out for days at Apple stores around the country and the purchasing process went off without a hitch - at least on Apple’s end. AT&T, meanwhile, was hounded with activation problems.

On Friday, AT&T was quick to pin the blame on Apple. “There’s a worldwide issue with iTunes that Apple is working to resolve,” an AT&T representative said in an e-mail. Apple did not respond to a request for comment.

Early hangups aside, one analyst predicted Friday that the second version of the iPhone will have a stronger debut than its predecessor.

One major reason: Apple is releasing the 3G model around the world on Friday. The original iPhone was rolled out from country to country over the course of the last year.

“Based on on pent up demand, expanded distribution, lower pricing,” RBC analyst Mike Abramsky wrote in a research note Friday, “Apple ships 1 million 3G iPhones in the first weekend.” Abramsky said that would be roughly four times the number of iPhones shipped during the same time frame last year.

Apple sold more than 6 million original iPhones.

Some analysts warn that expectations for the new iPhone are too high. For one thing, the economy is a lot weaker than it was a year ago. Consumers may not no so eager to shell out the $2,200 or more it would cost for the iPhone and the mandatory two-year subscription.

Early reviews were more subdued than the glowing critiques of the first iPhone.

David Pogue of the New York Times called the iPhone 3G “a nice upgrade,” but suggested it wasn’t something existing iPhone owners should rush out and buy. The real novelty, Pogue said, was the App Store, where owners of the old and new iPhone can purchase games and other software - most for $9.99 or less.

Source — CNN