Thanks to a year head start and a lower price of entry, Microsoft's Xbox 360 had quite a significant lead over the PlayStation 3 when Sony's system first launched back in '06. Since that time, the Blu-ray-powered machine has been playing catchup, and now some six years later, it has managed to surpass Microsoft's gaming box.
According to a forecast document from the International Data Corporation (and made into plain English by GI International), the PlayStation 3 has officially outpaced the Xbox 360 is units shipped worldwide. As of December 2012, “Sony’s PS3 managed to surpass the number of Xbox 360s shipped worldwide (about 77 million vs. 76 million), despite the PS3 launching a year later.”
While units shipped isn't a direct correlation to actual sales, one would assume that neither Microsoft nor Sony would ship consoles out in a number that grossly exceeds demand.
The forecast also went on to discuss the future of Nintendo's latest console, predicting that “Nintendo will still ‘find an audience’ with Wii U, reaching global shipments of 50 million by year-end 2016.”
Will Sony continue this trend and go down as the second-place victor in the console wars this generation? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
[Via]
