Nintendo Wii Expected to Outsell Xbox 360 and Playstation 3

Market research group NPD expects the Nintendo Wii to be North America's top selling console in January. The Wii sold 436,000 units compared to 294,000 for Microsoft's Xbox 360 and 244,000 for Sony's Playstation 3.

NPD also reports that Nintendo's Wii has taken a 68 percent share of the 600,000 consoles sold in Japan. Sony's Playstation 3 picked up 25 percent and the Xbox 360 picked up only 7 percent.

"There has always been a strong concern that the Wii was gimmicky," Credit Suisse analyst Jay Defibaugh said. "But each passing month assuages that theory."

Market research firm IDC claims that Nintendo will capture more than one third of the video game console market by 2008 and will surpass rivals Sony and Microsoft.

Despite Microsoft's Xbox 360 having a one-year release lead over Nintendo's Wii and Sony's Playstation, analysts agree that Nintendo will be able to outship Sony and Microsoft.

IDC says that Nintendo is broadening the video game audience with the innovative Wii.

"Nintendo has designed its latest hardware and software to be more inviting and fun, and less intimidating for non-gamers including those who may never self-identify as a gamer," IDC said.

On the other hand the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 are in a battle over the more traditional video game console market.

"Microsoft is relishing in the PS3's launch slip-ups, where PS3 supply deficits diminished profits," IDC said.

"With the Wii, Nintendo is abdicating the specification war, leaving Sony and Microsoft to slug it out between themselves for the hardcore market," commented Billy Pidgeon, at program manager at IDC. "We believe concerted efforts to broaden the appeal of videogames beyond the traditional enthusiast/hardcore base will deepen the industry's penetration. This is good news for an industry that seemed to be receding last year due to over-saturation of the core base."