eGames 07: PlayStation 3 sales pass 100,000

I'm not weighing in either way, but as the real cost of the console is roughly the same as the PlayStation 2 during launch period (after adjusting for inflation since 2000), one would expect the demand curve to be roughly similar.

If the market for consoles has grown since 2000 (which it definitely has), one would expect the PlayStation 3 to reach the same milestones as the PlayStation 2 slightly faster. To be precise, equally as fast as the percentage increase in market size. If it didn't reach those milestones at that increased rate, it's actually underperforming compared to the PlayStation 2. If it reaches them faster than the marketsize adjusted growth rate, it's outperforming the PlayStation 2.

No, no negative spin involved. The economic perspective is normally that electronic consumer goods have gone through significant negative inflation, so a stable price for a given market good (not necessarily the same good over time) over close to seven years now is commonly seen as a real price increase.

Besides, even if you don't want to believe that, it's still within 10%. With the amount of error introduced by the RBA's selection of a basket of goods, a real price that's comparable within 10% is pretty darn close. Close enough, anyway. Arguing about this is missing the forest for the trees.

The PS3 also launched with multiple SKUs, so if you're going to take that argument, it's performed remarkably badly given it's actually been on offer in the Australian market for almost 10% under the PS2 launch price of around $900 in real dollars.

Either way, there wasn't any spin apart from what Sony put on it. What I said was that just that because they hit 100k units faster than the PS2 doesn't necessarily mean that it's actually performing better than the PS2 in reality. It may, it may not. But, their statement is pure marketing, not necessarily founded in logic. Don't shoot the messenger ...

For context, I'm going through 08 planning at the moment, and these are among some of the issues I'm grappling with. So, it's probably not a reflection on Sony specifically, it's just more of a comment on the complexities of calculating market performance. If I were in Sony's shoes, I'd be spinning exactly the same way. I'd probably be spinning it harder, to be honest - it's a great soundbite that seems logical on face value, so it could get a lot of air time.

That's a good point. By that token, the PS3 isn't doing too badly compared to the PS2.