Japan - Just as Nintendo was once synonymous with gaming in the way that Kleenex is synonymous with tissue,* Game Boy was used interchangeably with handheld gaming for more than 15 years. So when the data comes in showing that Sony's first entry into the handheld market has captured and held 30% market share or more for over six months, it's no small feat, especially when considering that the DS has overtaken the PS2 for greatest selling system in Japan, ever.* How many other products can we say that about? Maybe the iPod for MP3 players? Twenty points to the reader that can name another product where the branding is synonymous with the product.
Oh yeah. Tussin. That's mine.
Clearly there are several issues that factor into this, including the much larger handheld market, the costly entry into hardcore gaming this generation*, and actually having a viable competitor to the Nintendo product**, but Sony's foothold in the market can no longer be denied.
* By hardcore gaming, I mean the ability to play a majority of games from "hard core" franchises on a single system.
** What? The Wonderswan? The Taco Phone? The Game Gear? Somehow, against gaming greats such as those, the PSP was only the first to seriously challenge Nintendo in the handheld arena.
Of Note & Notice
1. The DS (all models) is averaging 79.2k units per week since the beginning of 2008.
2. The PSP (all models) is averaging 72.4k units per week since the beginning of 2008.
3. The PSP has gained 7.55% market share since 08/27/07.
(click to enlarge)
4 comments:
It seems that the real system war in Japan is between the DS and the PSP; not between the Wii, the PS3, and the Xbox 360. It would be quite interesting what will the handheld war be like when Dragon Quest IX is released in March.
(Yes, but what of DQX and FFXIII?)
To your point, if by "real system war" you mean "a conclusion which may directly lead to a different market leader in the next handheld generation," then you may be correct.
Sony have done remarkably well considering this is their first venture into handheld gaming - no doubt the PSP has been a success.
However the fact remains that the DS has outsold the PSP by more than 2 - to - 1 not just in Japan but worldwide.......i don't think Nintendo have too much to worry about at the moment.
I just thought of a branding name that's synonymous with the product:
Gillette for men's shaving :P
Do i win?
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