Nintendo's Japan Wii Sales Double Those of Sony's PlayStation 3

via bloomberg

Nintendo Co., the world's third- biggest maker of video game players, has sold more than twice as many Wii game consoles in Japan as rival Sony Corp. has sold of its PlayStation 3, a research report said.

Kyoto-based Nintendo has sold 1.95 million units of its newest game machine as of March 25 since it debuted on Dec. 2 last year, Tokyo-based research firm Enterbrain Inc. said in a faxed statement. Sony has sold 812,000 of its latest console since November 11, the report said.

As the PlayStation 3 loses market share in Japan, it becomes more difficult for Sony to recoup investment in the machine. Sony and rivals Nintendo and Microsoft Corp., which makes the Xbox 360, sell players at or near a loss on expectations of making money on game software.