">Forum Views ()
">Forum Replies ()
Read more with google mobile :
U.S. video games sales fall 17 pct in March: NPD
Yahoo!
My Yahoo!
Mail
Yahoo! Search
Search:
Sign InNew User? Sign Up
News Home -
Help
Navigation
Primary Navigation
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular
Secondary Navigation
Search
Search:
U.S. video games sales fall 17 pct in March: NPD
Reuters - Friday, April 17
By Gabriel Madway
ADVERTISEMENT
SAN FRANCISCO - Overall U.S. video game sales fell 17 percent in March to $1.43 billion, research group NPD said on Thursday, a revealing figure for an industry that had so far shown resilience in the economic downturn.
Video game software sales dropped 17 percent to $792.8 million in the month, while hardware sales fell 18 percent to $455.6 million.
Analysts said the size of the decline was a bit surprising but also misleading due to a difficult comparison with March of 2008, which saw a major game release in "Super Smash Bros. Brawl."
"March was just such an outsized month last year," said Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter.
However, he said the data does reveal some weakness in the market, and he expects April sales to be flat.
NPD also attributed some of the decline to the fact that Easter fell in March last year, boosting purchases for gifts.
For the first quarter of 2009 as a whole, video game sales were flat at $4.25 billion.
Although Nintendo's Wii won the month, Microsoft Corp's Xbox 360 was the only console to achieve year-over-year growth.
The Wii sold 601,000 units in March, while the Xbox was No. 2 with 330,000 units, followed by Sony's PlayStation 3 with 218,000 units.
"If there was one area that surprised me this month, it was hardware sales," said NPD analyst Anita Frazier in a release. "While it's not unusual for March hardware sales to be lower than February, I thought we'd see higher unit sales on most platforms."
Although the Wii far outsells the Xbox 360 and the PS3 globally, in the important Japanese market PS3 sales outstripped those of the Wii in March for the first time in 16 months.
Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime said in an interview the company has a number of important new games on the way for Wii and "we're confident that we'll continue to see very strong hardware sales behind those launch titles."
Sony recently cut the price of its older console, the PlayStation 2, by 23 percent to $99.99 in an attempt to lure new buyers.
Only a few days of the lower-priced PS2 were included in NPD's March numbers. NPD recorded PS2 sales of 112,000 units.
In an email statement, Sony Computer Entertainment America said it is "seeing exciting preliminary numbers for PlayStation 2 with the recent price cut."
Capcom's "Resident Evil 5" was the best-selling video game in the month, selling 1.5 million units for the Xbox and PlayStation 3, according to NPD.
Nintendo's "Pokemon Platinum Version" sold 805,000 units, good for second place, while Microsoft's "Halo Wars" was No. 3 with 639,000 units sold.
Nintendo's DS was the top-selling U.S. handheld console, with 563,000 units, ahead of Sony's PSP, which sold 168,000.
Nintendo released the next generation of its DS franchise, the DSi, in the United States on April 5. The company said it sold 435,000 units in the first week.
Email Story
IM Story
Printable View
Blog This
Recommend this article
0 users recommend
Sign in to recommend this article »
Most Recommended Stories »
Related Articles: Technology
Google profit up but revenue drops for first timeAFP - Friday, April 17
Time Warner Cable shelves bandwidth usage billingAFP - Friday, April 17
U.S. video games sales fall 17 pct in March: NPDReuters - Friday, April 17
YouTube in Sony content deal, sees moreReuters - Friday, April 17
Phishers get more wily as cybercrime growsReuters - Friday, April 17
Most Popular – Technology
Viewed
Bad mood, better recall, researchers find
Police nab Norwegian pair during high-speed sex
French warship detains pirates, US urges action
Harry Potter actor arrested over cannabis find
US economy contracts further, remains weak: Fed
View Complete List »
Search:
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular
Copyright © 2009 Yahoo! Southeast Asia Pte Ltd. (Co. Reg. No. 199700735D). All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy
- Terms of Service
- Community
- Intellectual Property Rights Policy
- Help
Other News on Friday, 17 April 2009 Mexico drug clash kills 16 ahead of Obama trip
| International
|
Poor prisons creating health time-bomb: U.N.
| International
|
U.S. captain held by pirates arrives safe in Kenya
| International
|
U.N.'s Ban sends chief of staff to Sri Lanka
| International
|
Sudan to allow some restoration of international aid
| International
|
Bolivia says thwarts Morales assassination plot
| International
|
Britain's Brown apologizes over offensive emails
| International
|
Spain attorney general against Guantanamo probe
| International
|
IBM not interested in Sun at any price: report
| Technology
|
Verizon plans app mart for Hub Web phone
| Technology
|
Time Warner Cable shelves broadband usage billing
| Technology
|
OpenX launches new ad server for small websites
| Technology
|
Internet used by more than half in U.S. election
| Technology
|
Sony joins other studios in digital conversion deal
| Technology
|
Plugged-in hotels ring in more guests: poll
| Technology
|
EBay to buy S.Korea's Gmarket for up to $1.2 billion
| Technology
|
Allen Stanford's face for sale on eBay
| Technology
|
Madden's football broadcasting draws to a close
| Entertainment
|
Man jailed for damaging Jamiroquai star's Ferrari
| Entertainment
|
Coelho targets celebrity in Cannes thriller
| Entertainment
|
Efron is footloose but song-free in 17 Again
| Entertainment
|
Sudan to allow some relief aid into Darfur
U.S. says Iran confirmed journalist's trial
Suicide bomber strikes Iraqi military base
Bacteria thriving beneath Antarctic glacier
UK economist says worst of recession may be over
Peres dismisses Israeli attack on Iran
Israel demands Palestinians recognise "Jewish state"
JPMorgan offers more signs of banking rebound
Horror of war at Iraqi morgue even as attacks fall
NY governor introduces gay marriage law
Lunchtime bombing kills 16 soldiers at Iraq base
Channel ferries run again after blockade ended
Obama envoy tells Israel U.S. wants Palestinian state
Execution top killer of Iraqi civilians
US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,273
Relations between US, Cuba seem within reach
Captain held by pirates heading home to Vermont
Google profit up but revenue drops for first time
South African sentenced to 20 years for arms deal
Time Warner Cable shelves bandwidth usage billing
US mulls asylum for Haitian immigrants: Clinton
U.S. video games sales fall 17 pct in March: NPD
US, Mexico vow to tackle drug cartels
YouTube in Sony content deal, sees more
Obama releases Bush-era interrogation memos
Phishers get more wily as cybercrime grows
Clash in Chechnya after end of security regime
Financial sector sees data breaches soar-Verizon
CIA won't face charges over harsh interrogations
Oprah to make Twitter debut
Netanyahu demands Palestinians recognise 'Jewish state'
Microsoft agrees to some lengthened U.S. oversight
Cost-cutting at NY Times, reorganization at WPost
Time Warner Cable shelves broadband usage billing
Nokia says handset market to fall more: report
YouTube in Sony content deal, sees more
Sony joins other studios in digital conversion deal
Nokia reports 90% drop in profit
Sri Lankan troops attack rebel defenses
US seeks transit deal with Turkmenistan
Expelled UN nuclear inspectors leave North Korea
UN tacitly backing SLanka offensive: Tamil rebels
Japan PM promises Pakistan up to $1 billion
Thai PM, ousted PM both call for reconciliation
YouTube adds more Hollywood movies, TV shows
Kaneto wins at Japan swimming championships
YouTube to show movies, TV shows from Sony
Thai "yellow shirt" leader Sondhi shot
African first ladies harness Hollywood star power
Catholic head in Hong Kong urges religious freedom in China
Indians start voting in monthlong elections
France's Dassault out of Indian fighter deal
EBay to buy control stake in SKorean marketplace
Holy Land hikes reveal beauty of a long-coveted land
India's inflation falls to 0.18 percent
Malaysia says 30,000 jobs lost amid global crisis
Bearded feminists protest against L'Oreal
McDonald's Hong Kong boss guilty of taking kickbacks
Young Cuban-Americans seek warmer ties with island
LeAnn Rimes to sing national anthem at Ky. Derby
Tech Mahindra's bid for India's Satyam approved
Hitler paintings 'go under the hammer' in Germany
Ind. Bank of Korea launches $1 bln 5-yr bond-source
15M hits later, YouTube Symphony makes live debut
Government approves Satyam sale to Tech Mahindra
Singing Scottish spinster a global media sensation
Pakistan's forex reserves rise to $11.22 bln
Hallelujah or Highway to Hell? Songs to die for
S.Korea fin min sees jobless over 1 mln in April
Small plane crashes in eastern Indonesia
Celine Dion, others eye NHL's Canadiens: report
Indonesia clears Time of defaming Suharto
Time magazine wins appeal in Indonesia
Indonesia court reverses Time magazine decision
Bored with training videos? Try a videogame
Plugged-in hotels ring in more guests: poll
Tech magazines shift from gadget glitz to survive
Allen Stanford's face for sale on eBay
EBay to buy S.Korea's Gmarket for up to $1.2 billion
OpenX launches new ad server for small websites
U.S. sees Arab peace plan as part of Palestinian state push
| International
|
Dozens feared killed in Afghanistan quake
| International
|
Thai yellow shirt leader Sondhi survives shooting
| International
|
Russia's Medvedev warns NATO over Georgia war games
| International
|
Vatican deplores Belgian censure of pope on condoms
| International
|
Donors pledge over $5 billion for wobbly Pakistan
| International
|
Spanish judge keeps Guantanamo probe alive
| International
|
Mugabe urges Zimbabweans to help fight sanctions
| International
|
Regional powers aim to rein in North Korea
| International
|
Washington, Brussels urged to join U.N. racism meet
| International
|
Pirate Bay's fileshare four get year's jail
| Technology
|
Phishers get more wily as cybercrime grows
| Technology
|
Sony Ericsson says Android phone to take time
| Technology
|
YouTube in Sony content deal, sees more
| Technology
|
U.S. video games sales fall 17 pct in March: NPD
| Technology
|
Nokia says handset market to fall more: report
| Technology
|
Financial sector sees data breaches soar: Verizon
| Technology
|
Microsoft agrees to some lengthened U.S. oversight
| Technology
|
Black Eyed Peas, Miley Cyrus lead singles chart
| Entertainment
|
American Idol Top 10 summer tour starts July 5
| Entertainment
|
Lean, light Tribeca Film Festival aims to inspire
| Entertainment
|
I bring music back to life says pianist Lang Lang
| Entertainment
|
Banks and Mann to star in Thinking
| Entertainment
|
Jewison laments the loss of art in U.S. film
| Entertainment
|
DJ AM staging interventions on MTV
| Entertainment
|
Golden reduces '70s stars to grumpy old sailors
| Entertainment
|
Pirate Bay's fileshare four get year's jail
| Entertainment
|
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights