Oh. Is that over? Good.

HAHA, Microsoft is getting their butt kicked on all fronts/backs.

@Joseph:

Not really. Microsoft shouldn't focus on selling the most consoles. They should focus on making money. Which they are. Not only is the xbox 360 console turning a profit but they're also raking in the cash from software sales, and software continues to sell better on the 360. Even games that were traditionally Playstation titles like Devil may cry and GTA.

@CCCombobreaker: Actually I believe they hadn't turned a profit until just recently. Their sales couldn't make up for the bad quality of the system build for how long.

In the end, America is known for producing garbage, hence the 360 selling well here.

@CCCombobreaker: Rationalize all you want, Sony for the win!

Last time I knew the console division for Microsoft had never turned a profit.

@imTheKing:

Yeah it was recently that they finally turned a profit. Hehe the funny thing is that American products are actually known for being good quality, but as far as I know the Xbox 360 is manufactured in China while the original Xbox was manufactured in mexico.

Turned a profit: [www.joystiq.com]

Turned a profit again: [www.1up.com]

They also made a small profit in 2006.

Especially if you take into account repairs.

@powerball:

Thats why its surprising that the entertainment and devices division is consistently turning a profit.

Yes, the Entertainment and Devices department at MS has turned a profit for 2 quarters straight. Last quarter it was 89 million profit. But don't forget, the quarter BEFORE that, they took a 1.2 Billion dollar charge for Xbox repairs for the upcoming year or two. But at least that lets MS claim a "profit" :p

Oh crap I guess the console war is over now...

Don't care as long as there are quality games to play, I'll be happy.

That's strange, considering how long the 360 has been on the market and the much higher price of PS3, the latter experiencing only minor price cuts. There have been some great deals going around for Xbox 360 recently, some giving away nice bundles for peanuts with extra controllers and games of your choice (yes, including GTA IV). I personally can't even make the leap to full HDTV before there's anything worthwhile broadcast in HD, needless to say I will not spend lots of €€ on a console that might be better at doing the said HD - no difference on a regular big plasma. That would be pointless. Let the market take care of prices and the rest of technology catch up; then we'll see. I'm glad that PS3 is doing well in Europe, but that isn't the biggest market, now is it?

what's interesting is sony launches everything (consoles, games) in europe several months after other other markets and the brand is still stronger over there

Europe isn't a fan of the Xbox in general. Playstation means games over there, especially on the main continent. In Spain for example, PS3 outsold 360 in the first 3 months.

Are Sony counting units shipped to retailers or units sold to customers?

I believe they count every PS3 shipped to retailers as a unit sold, even if it's still on the shelves.

@Weihovah: Yes, Sony treats Europeans poorly and then Europeans reward them!

The only reason sony is winning is the blu-ray player... If 360 could put blue-ray in their console it would out sell the Playstation... In my opinion.

Playstation might mean games, but the selection of games available for the PS3 at this moment is ridiculous.

The EU's view of Microsoft as a monopolistic entity that bundles apps in order to stifle competition can't be helping MS's image over there.

And the Japanese still haven't gotten over the first Xbox's original large controllers that were apparently an affront to people with smaller hands.

@LittleJon:
"I believe they count every PS3 shipped to retailers as a unit sold, even if it's still on the shelves."

Which is what Microsoft does with the Xbox360. Or in their words "sold number refers to units "sold into retail," which refers to units in transit, units sitting in store inventories and machines sold to consumers."

@imTheKing: known for producing garbage? because clearly all the high quality stuff comes from china and japan

You have to give Microsoft some credit though. Not only were they new to the console business, but also to the hardware business, and they're going up against the Playstation brand who's other iterations have sold over 100 million units each. It will be difficult for anyone to break that grip on the market. Microsoft has to be happy that Sony made so many mistakes in 2006 and 2007.

Comment on PlayStation 3 Surpasses Xbox 360 In Europe The people I know (including myself) who have purchased a PS3, have done so solely for its Blu-Ray movie playing capabilities, not its game playing abilities. While admittedly I am a fan boy of the 360, I honestly still give love to my PS3 for it's slightly better movie playback quality (dvds), the blu-tooth remote, and of course blu-ray movies now that it has K.O'd HD-DVD. But other than High Velocity Bowling (which is a blast) I don't own, or plan on anytime soon buying a game for the PS3. Maybe Grand Tursimo if it comes out this decade... And I will continue to buy my games for my 360, like I did for GTA4 But to all the idiots on this board (and all others) who think sales numbers equals better quality, why don't you go buy a Wii? Cause it's going to continue to dominate, especially with the Wii-Fit coming out. The catch for the PS3 is that DEVELOPERS will know the sales numbers of THEIR product (GAMES) and focus on those systems that make them the most money. . I would argue that PS3 and Wii will probably never move as much software (games) as the 360. *flamesuit on*

I'm not sure how people are taking this as some sort of news that Microsoft is doing poorly....because, uh, they're not...at all.

Also that article is a ridiculous piece of "journalism." It's poorly written and basically is just Sony quotes saying "YEAH MAN WE'RE DOING SO MUCH BETTER THAN MICROSOFT! SUCK IT!"

Only there's no data or anything reported other than Sony "saying so."

Also I'm fairly sure the "games analyst" they tapped for that interview is a Sony employee. Just read it.

I mean I love the PS3, but that article is a joke.

i don't care, all i want is good game, cheaper prices

It's not where its Built the problem its the hardware and design of the 360. You can hand made a product made of gold but if your product has flaws then your product will be of bad quality.My believe is that Sony did a great job on waiting till they knew their product was reliable for all markets.

We don't want the console war to end. As consumers, we want more combatants. Competition pushes for better products and cheaper prices. Come on Atari, 3DO, and Neo-Geo. GET BACK IN THE GAME!!!!

I knew the PS3 would eventually outsell the 360. I never imagined how many people would buy the friggin' Wii!

The trouble for Microsoft is that the Xbox 1 got sucha bad reputation here so everyone still associates the 360 with that. Also the Red Ring of Death's are always being complained about and many people are getting fed up of consoles self-destructing. Also, many people have never played Halo (which I don't personally like) so weren't seduced by Halo3. Finally, everybody wants a Wii over here.

Personally I think when I finally go next-gen from my PS2 it will be a PS3 as I like online but don't want to pay and all the media thingies.

The way I see it, the only advantage that the PS3 has over the 360 is Blu-Ray. I myself only own about 5 regular DVDs; I just download HD content straight onto my PC. And from where I'm sitting, paying £120 ($240) extra for hardware that I'll never use...

The thing is, people shouldn't really compare them in terms of, 'the PS3 has better hardware'; yes it does, but it hasn't shown any real advantages of it. 'It has built-in wireless' - sure, but once again I wouldn't use that anyway since my TV is right next to my router.

Microsoft gave people the choice of how they wanted to do things. (Addon HD-DVD player for the win). If Sony had made a version of the PS3 without the Blu-Ray player, not messed around with blu-ray discs for games, and made it the same price as the 360 at launch, then I probably would have waited for the PS3 simply because I've had good experiences with other Sony consoles.

To be honest though, I'm a bit dubious of these figures. The PS3's even more expensive here compared to the 360 than it is in the US.

Either way, HD's a con. That's just my input, but I swear the difference is not worth £400 extra (For a Sky HD box etc)!

This should not surprise anyone. Sony had an 80% market share last generation. If MS manages to improve upon the mere 20% share they had last gen, and I feel quite certain that they will; it is a victory for them and certainly sets them up very nicely for the next next-gen. I own all three consoles, and IMO the 360 is the most user friendly, the most useful and by far and away the most fun. The only downside has been the hardware issues, which for me personally have been very minor.

MS jacked it all up with their quality issues. They had the market but their poor engineered console screwed them. If Sony is doing so good I expect a price reduction and then Ill consider buying one.

WELL NO SHIT!!!

Like everyone already has a 360 so why buy more??

PS3 on the other hand is finally getting where it should have been a year and a half ago!

So Sony is not really doing much to Microsoft at all..

and Bonoman... your an asshole who duzznt even look @ the other side...
and all you other haters..., theres nothing really to talk about the 360 now except new games and Blu-ray rumors... Theres nothing else happening because 360 came out(feels like forever) @ the end of 2005...
Got popular sold millions and now its just travelling on and on with no huge climaxes because thats how sales in every product are go..

PS3, well they broke even on there sales in the beggining of this year (somewhere around that time) and are just now being more and more used... thats just to long.... consoles arent supposed to wait for a year and then get popular, there ment to be an instant hit...

I love my PS3 for it's HD capabilities and I've always known that in time the gamed library would begin to pick up. I love my 360 for it's game library and online abilities. I'm a score whore, I like getting a reward that goes into a global account to show how well I've done. I love my Wii because it's the little system that could. Twilight Princess and Wii Sports alone make it worth it for me. I own a 42" 1080p television set so I do make use of high def when I can, the only console not high def is the Wii because I haven't been that concerned about it compared to the PS3 and 360. They're all great consoles and I look forward to what each system competing against each other with strong numbers will do for an industry that was growing stagnant in it's game development. I wish the PS3 would develop a better online network and a global online gamerscore. I wish the 360 would open up more and allow the installation of linux like the PS3. The Wii on the other hand, I'm perfectly content with, though I like the idea of the gamerscore for wii, I understand that, that is not the direction Nintendo is going with the Wii.

@skyline6:

What the hell are you going on about? First off I only own a 360. I don't even have a PS3. I love the 360 to death.

I don't think you even read my post.

Also it's "you're" and not "your."

Tool.

@Totorototoro: Actually Sony changed their number reporting to numbers of units actually sold to consumers, where as msoft still reports by units shipped.

I may be very wrong, but as I understood it, the PS3 is selling better than the Xbox 360 in nearly every place but America, including world-wide. The Xbox is an American game machine, and that is about it.

Not that there is anything wrong with that, since we (obviously) do live in America. But, even here the PS3 (as I understand it) is rapidly catching up with Xbox sales.

Clearly, Microsoft is not going anywhere, so who is selling the most systems is a pointless discussion. But, as far as I can tell, the Xbox 360 is already in third place and, the Wii is still kicking everyone's hind quarters.

Yay PS3!

@Monty:

The 360 will probably be in "third place" by the end of this year. If not then early 2009. I think the US sales are about 11m 360s and 4m Ps3s.

The 360 could end up being a lot like the sega genesis/megadrive. It does very well in America, average to bad everywhere else. Although I believe american sales of the 360 have surpassed the genesis sales. I'd say one of the only big differences is that the 360 has some RPGs and some more RPGs are coming. If you wanted RPGs and you had a genesis you were out of luck for the most part.

@CCCombobreaker: I can guarantee you that it's not doing badly in the UK...

@pevans34: American cars are garbage, and the Japanese are known for their electronics.... hell i cant even think of any kick ass products made in America

I'm not a fan of bloated corporations in general, but it always makes me smile when MS loses, even if its only to someone like Sony

Question is, is this trend going to continue near the end of the year when we will be seeing our first $199 Blu-Ray players. Especially ones that are better then the PS3 and cheaper?

All other evidence points to the fact that people aren't really buying that many games for the PS3 and I don't think developers or publishers are happy with those numbers.

Sorry but people do buy PS3 games for their PS3. Sure a lot of people buy it for BD, which is good. However at the same I hear many many people say since they use their PS3 so much they'll buy games for it, and then since their friends are getting they'll buy the same games etc. You get what I'm saying. PS3 isn't even trying, let's go back to this in a year and see if you guys can say the same thing.

@VENAT0R: Yeah I like the Japanese too, but not for Pearl Harbor.
Anyway, they got what they deserved with Hiroshima and Nagasaki, they learned not to fuck around with America.

I love their electronics and currently most of my stuff is from Sony (Sony LCD TV, PS3, Sony camera, Sony laptop, PSP) so yeah...

Not saying America doesn't make good things because they make the Apple ipod and i have one of those, I also have a Nintendo DS, but thats Japanese too, lol!

Hhaahahha! It was about time! :)

The best things to come out of America are peanuts, i don't think there's much doubt about that one.

Japanese manufacturing > most. As has been shown by the Wii, apparently....

Can't wait to tell all the Xbox fanboys about this their last argument has just gone down the drain =].

Why would any of you be happy about any American company losing marketshare against a foreign company and revel in it?

Its a shame there are so many douche bag hypocrites who do nothing but consume and produce excrement.