US Console Sales Rise in July
Via Nextgen
Total U.S. console software sales for July were $386 million, according to NPD stats released this morning, up 22% compared to last year and much higher than even the most optimistic estimates.
Current generation software sales declined $45.5 million. Next generation software sales increased by $116 million. High points included DS software sales which have held up well in the aftermath of DS Lite's introduction.
Overall unit sales were up 22%, while ASPs, bouyed by Xbox 360 games, remained steady.
Year-to-date software sales are up 2% compared to last year, way up on most expectations which anticipated the market down. Wedbush Morgan Securities posted, "We intend to reassess our full year forecast with a bias for upward revision."
The analyst added, "We think that there will be a positive market reaction to the robust July sales growth. We are pleasantly surprised that software sales through the summer months have been so strong, and now believe that the decline in current generation software will be largely offset by next generation software sales for the next several months. Once the Sony PS3 and Nintendo Wii are launched, we expect next generation software sales to surpass current generation software sales."
