Could Xbox One sales numbers catch up to the PlayStation 4 due to Titanfall and adding more launch markets? Some analysts think Microsoft can afford to be the tortoise to Sony’s hare since the latter company is predicted to lose over $1 billion in 2014.
In a related report by The Inquisitr , ironically the success of the Xbox One bundle almost insures that a Titanfall 2 PS4 port will happen in the future .
According to the NPD, PS4 sales numbers in the United States actually had a small lead in FebruarySony didn’t released exact US sales numbers, but Microsoft said they sold 258,000 units. Since Xbox One unit sales were 90 percent of PS4 sales, we can estimate the PS4 sales numbers at roughly 287,000 in February. But worldwide Sony claims they’ve sold over 6 million units since the beginning of March and Microsoft only confirmed the 3.9 million mark back in January, so it’s possible they’re close to over five million by now.
Microsoft corporate vice president Phil Harrison claims the PS4 vs Xbox One console battle is a “marathon, not a race,” and he believes Titanfall has helped them increase Xbox One sales by 96 percent this past week:
“We’re 120 days into our platform lifecycle. We’re happy with our plan. We’re happy with the performances of our key franchises and key partnerships, most notably Titanfall in the last couple of weeks. You can see independent surveys and studies showing our sell-through doubling in the UK as far as hardware.”
So why is the PS4 winning? It’s often pointed out that the PS4 launched in 48 countries while the Xbox One launch countries only numbered 13. Because of this, PlayStation 4 availability was very poor and it’s still almost impossible to find a PS4 in stock in the United States. Harrison says this picture will change in September of 2014 when the Xbox One launches in 26 countries:
“That will be 39 markets where Xbox One will be available by the end of the year. Partnering that with the ID@Xbox program means that I hope we find really culturally relevant local products and experiences coming to our platform. That will really accelerate us.”
Now Sony’s overall business may also play a large part in the success of the PlayStation 4. The Japanese company’s credit rating was reduced to junk status, they’ve been suffering from major layoffs, and business losses have led them to sell of their PC business and spin off other divisions. Although higher than projected PS4 sales numbers have definitely helped the bottom line, Sony is still predicted to lose $1 billion this year while Microsoft has $80 billion in cash reserves.
Because of these reasons, analysts like Motley Fool are saying Microsoft can afford to be patient in catching up:
“Now the Xbox is an established brand and Microsoft — with its huge cash reserves — has the ability to wait out its competitors and grow its user base over the long term. Microsoft already pushed Sega out of the console market and Nintendo appears to be nearing the edge as its WiiU flops. Sony may not be in quite as dire straits as Nintendo, but the once seemingly invulnerable company has faltered mightily in recent years. Microsoft doesn’t need one hit game or some sort of game-changing Hail Mary to establish the Xbox One. Instead, it needs to follow the same strategy it did with the Xbox 360 and with its Windows operating system…. Microsoft can afford to build its brand and catch up in the long run.”
Do you think Xbox One sales numbers could catch up to the PS4?