According to sales data from each console's launch through to the end of July (or the end of August in Japan), people have bought 9 million Wiis, 8.9 million Xboxes and 3.7m PS3s.
As further evidence of its dominance, Nintendo now has a larger market cap than Sony (NYSE: SNE), even though video games are a relatively small part of Sony's business.
There are a few explanations for Nintendo's dominance. First, the price: Wii goes for $249 while Xbox 360 will set you back $300-$400. PS3 tips the scales at $600.
But the larger factor can be summed up in a sentence: Nintendo's Wii is just more fun, less arcane, and appealing to casual gamers. PS3 and Xbox 360 are big with hardcore nerds, but that's a relatively small segment of the population. By appealing to people who might not have previously considered themselves gamers, Nintendo has scored a hit.
It's possible that Sony and Microsoft will be able to pick up some ground with price-cuts in time for the holiday season, but the hardcore gamers probably already have their systems. Casual gamers will be more likely to go for Wii this season, and I would expect that Nintendo will actually widen the sales gap in the next few months.
Closing Bell: What sell-off? (AIG, ABK, EPR, MBI, JAVA, ORCL, ERTS)
Chasing Value: 2009 blazing picks -- Q3 review 
Happy holidays! Google giving away free Wi-Fi 
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-12-2007 @ 5:53PM
Steve Shackelford said...
I am happy for Nintendo's Wii but I am still an Xbox fan. I am curious how the new Halo 3 is going to effect the market share. I believe it could be a catalyst for the 360 but I could be wrong. - Steve http://www.goofygrouch.com
9-12-2007 @ 10:54PM
Orange said...
Dude your a retard, if nerds are a "small segment of he population" why have the only sold 9.1 less million then the Wii, and secondly, A 360 can be bought for like 180$ used, and Iv seen them at stores for 250$
9-12-2007 @ 11:39PM
John said...
Plain and simple, I would not be caught dead playing Madden on a Wii.
9-13-2007 @ 12:30AM
Brandon said...
That is extremely offensive to call hard-core fans of the Xbox 360 "nerds." Labeling of that type should never run rampant in professional journalism and needs to be stopped.
9-13-2007 @ 2:09AM
Dan said...
Wow, you fellas are really easily offended. Not spending much time playing are you ?