October 22, 2005
Sony Sets Targets for PS2 and PSP
Sony has set a goal to sell 2-3 million PSPs before Christmas. Another SKU was announced which will come with a usable 1G memory stick vs. the paltry 32MB stick used before. Sony has shipped over 10 million PSPs world-wide and with software sales of 20M units and UMD movie sales of 15M. They want to sell 2.5-3M PS2s by the end of year too.
I'm very surprised how well UMD movies are selling. I didn't think a $200+ device would be bought people just to play movies, but I was wrong. Overhearing people talk about the PSP at Target, women are like, "I want that thing to play movies". I guess if you are willing to buy a crappy DVD portable player for $150, a PSP isn't such a bad buy. Although I doubt many consumers know they have re-buy all their movies in UMD format. I doubt most consumers want to go through the hassle of converting their video content to fit on a memory stick.
Pre-Christmas sales in the US, SCEA president and CEO Kaz Hirai has stated that the company expects to sell 2-3 million PSPs before the beginning 2006... the company has recently announced a new 'Giga Pack' PSP bundle, which includes a 1GB Memory Sick Duo in place of the standard 32MB memory stick. The new pack will be available in the UK and Ireland from November 21st, with EMEA territories following a week later. Sony plans to release the pack in North America, although no release date has been announced.
