San Francisco (CA) –Nintendo has confirmed that sales of its family-oriented Wii console plummeted by a shocking 57 percent. The company blamed a lack of “blockbuster software titles” for the significant decrease in shipments.
“There were fewer blockbuster software titles that briskly drove hardware sales this June quarter versus the same period a year ago when titles like Mario Kart Wii and Wii Fit were launched in overseas market,” Nintendo explained. “Thus, Wii hardware sales units were 2.224 miliion units in the first quarter of this fiscal year and 56.62 million units life-to date.”
Meanwhile, Sony reported a 37.4 percent year-on-year decrease of video game and computer sales, due to lower game console and VAIO PC sales. Indeed, the company sold 1.1 million Playstation 3 units and 1.3 million PlayStation Portables (PSP) in the first quarter, compared to 1.6 million and 3.7 million, respectively, in the same period last year.
“Sales in the game business decreased year-on-year as a result of a decrease in units sales of PSP and PS3 hardware and an overall decrease in software sales, as well as the impact of the appreciation of the yen,” stated Sony.
Mitsushige Akino of the Tokyo-based Ichiyoshi Investment Management Corporation recommended an immediate price cut for both consoles.
“Sony and Nintendo need to cut prices for the PlayStation and the Wii or those products won’t sell,” Akino told Bloomberg. “Investors are fearful consumers will cut spending even further.”
