July NPD - Sony says PS3 sales have doubled this year

Responding to last night's July NPD figures, Sony said PS3 sales have risen 99 percent in the year to date, with software sales extending by 206 percent so far compared to last year.

More than 1.8 million PS3 consoles have been sold in the US this year, said the firm, in a release that made no mention of Xbox 360 at all.

PlayStation brand hardware and software sales combined totalled $792.3 million last month.

"Our year-to-date sales growth of 99 percent for the PS3 reaffirms that consumers are indeed embracing PS3 as their entertainment hub-of-choice with its feature-rich offerings like Blu-ray and our recently announced video delivery service," said Jack Tretton.

"With an unmatched software line-up that includes LittleBigPlanet, SOCOM: Confrontation, Resistance 2 and MotorStorm: Pacific Rift, and the anticipated launch of our new 80GB PS3 model, we're confident in a strong second half of the year and look forward to quickly addressing any inventory shortages due to the transition."

Release after the link.

PlayStation by the Numbers - July 2008

PS3 Continues to Experience Strong Momentum; PS3 Demonstrates Hardware Sales Growth of 99 Percent Year-to-Date; PS3 Software Sales Growth Exceeds 206 Percent Year-to-Date

Total PlayStation Hardware Unit Sales Top 602,176

PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) again posted strong sales in July 2008, selling 224,900 hardware units, driven by the continued popularity of the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots PS3 bundle. From January to July 2008, more than 1.8 million PS3s have been sold in the U.S., representing a year-to-date hardware sales growth of 99%.

* Fueled by the introduction of 10 new first and third-party titles to the PS3 Greatest Hits program — including blockbusters such as MotorStorm, Warhawk, Resistance: Fall of Man and others — PS3 software sales showed growth of 206% year-to-date.
* SCEA will introduce an unmatched software line-up this holiday season and fiscal year with more than 140 first and third-party titles on Blu-ray disc for PS3, including SOCOM: US Navy SEALs Confrontation, Resistance 2, Motorstorm: Pacific Rift, NBA ‘09: The Inside, and the award-winning LittleBigPlanet.
* The popularity of PLAYSTATION®Network continued to grow in July with the new PLAYSTATION Network video delivery service on PLAYSTATION®Store, the release of the Qore's Episode 03 and the launch of highly-anticipated games such as PixelJunk Eden and Siren: Blood Curse. As of June 2008, there are more than 10 million registered PLAYSTATION Network accounts worldwide and approximately 200 million pieces of content downloaded worldwide.

PSP experienced solid sales in July with 221,651 PSP hardware units sold, spurred by continued sales of the God of War: Chains of Olympus PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) bundle. This represents a year-to-date growth of 16%.

PlayStation®2 (PS2) also had a solid month in July, selling 155,510 hardware units. More than 42.5 million PS2s have been sold in the U.S. as of July 2008.

Power of the PlayStation Portfolio

The PlayStation brand continued to generate impressive sales across all three platforms, earning $388.6 million in July.
· Year to date (Jan-July), the PlayStation brand generated almost $3.3 billion in revenue, representing an increase of more than 22% year-to-date.
· PlayStation total hardware revenue was $608.7 million in July, representing a year-to-date growth of 23%.
· PlayStation total software revenue in July was $183.6 million, representing a year-to-date growth of over 28%.

CEO Perspective

"Our year-to-date sales growth of 99% for the PS3 reaffirms that consumers are indeed embracing PS3 as their entertainment hub-of-choice with its feature-rich offerings like Blu-ray and our recently announced video delivery service. With an unmatched software line-up that includes LittleBigPlanet, SOCOM: Confrontation, Resistance 2 and MotorStorm: Pacific Rift, and the anticipated launch of our new 80GB PS3 model, we're confident in a strong second half of the year and look forward to quickly addressing any inventory shortages due to the transition.

- Jack Tretton, president and CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment America