January NPD: Xbox 360 sales up 33%, Live subs over 17 million

Microsoft's post-NPD statement's a happy affair, dwelling on 33 percent growth for 360 sales in Janaury compared to the same month in 2007, and claiming last month set a record for people signing up to Live.

More than 17 million people have now signed up to the online service, said the company, and the Halo Wars demo was downloaded more than 2 million times in the first week of release.

You can hear the gigantic smile from here. Full thing after the break.

January NPD results are in and Xbox 360 highlights include:

* Xbox 360 system sales hit 309,000, up 33 percent from a year
earlier, as holiday momentum carries into 2009

* Xbox 360 claimed five of the top 10 titles in January, with
more top-rated games available than on any other system

* Single biggest month ever for Xbox LIVE as record number of
new members joined in January; exclusive game add-ons extend
blockbuster experiences

Xbox 360 kicked off 2009 with a bang, posting record system sales for
January of 309,000 units (January NPD data), a 33 percent jump from a
year earlier. Sales were driven by Xbox 360's broad lineup of
blockbuster video games, as well as Xbox LIVE, which saw more new
members join than during any month in its history. The $199 Xbox 360
Arcade model also offers tremendous value for consumers looking to jump
into next-generation interactive entertainment.

Games on Xbox 360

Xbox 360 games claimed five spots in the January top 10, including "Left
4 Dead," "Call of Duty: World at War," "Skate 2," "Lord of the Rings:
Conquest," and "Gears of War 2" (January NPD data).

Sales of third-party games on Xbox 360 hit $139 million in January
(January NPD data), with Xbox 360 generating more life-to-date sales at
retail for third-party publishers than competing consoles. With 132
Xbox 360 titles rated 80 or higher on Metacritic, compared to 90 for PS3
and 42 for Wii (Metacritic data), it's no wonder that Xbox 360 owners
lead the industry in game purchases, having bought an average of 8.1
games each.

Xbox LIVE Records Highest Member Growth in History

January was also a banner month for Xbox LIVE as more people joined than
in any previous month in its history. A total of more than 17 million
people are now active members of the industry-leading service, which
features a vast selection of downloadable games, game add-ons, movies
and TV shows of any device connected to the TV.

Consumers Get More Entertainment on Xbox LIVE

* More than 1 million Xbox LIVE members now enjoying Netflix's
streaming video service

* Each household has watched an average of 16 movies over the
service

* Xbox 360 is the only place to get the complete storylines for
hit games like "Grand Theft Auto IV" and "Fallout 3"

* "Fable II Knothole Island" and "Fallout 3 Operation:
Anchorage" were two of the top performers for game add-ons in the month
of January

* The "Halo Wars" demo, released on February 5, set a day-one
record for the most demo downloads on Xbox LIVE; with more than 2
million downloads in the first week, it was one of the top demo
downloads of all time on the service

* "The Lost and Damned" arrives February 17 for the
highest-rated game of all time, "Grand Theft Auto IV", only on Xbox LIVE