[By Wii Fanboy]
By DAN GALLAGHER
January 18, 2008 10:08 a.m.
The videogame sector had a blowout month in December thanks to a strong slate of popular titles and the continued strength of the Nintendo Co. Wii, which remained in short supply through the holidays.
Sales of videogame software in the U.S. jumped 36% during the month compared to last year, according to data from NPD Group released late Thursday.
That came in ahead of most analysts' estimates. Sales of game hardware grew 17% as consumers continued to snap up next-generation consoles from Nintendo, Sony Corp. and Microsoft Corp.
The Nintendo Wii ruled the day, coming in with sales of 1.35 million units for the month compared with 1.26 million units for the Xbox 360 and 797,600 units for the PlayStation 3. The PS3 has seen a huge boost in sales over the last two months thanks to a sharp price reduction for the console, which debuted on the market in late 2006 at the high price of $600.
The Wii finished the year as the top-selling console, with nearly 6.3 million units sold domestically. That compares to 4.6 million units for the Xbox 360 and nearly 2.6 million units for the PS3 for the year, according to NPD data.
Among handheld devices, the Nintendo DS fared even better, with 8.5 million in sales for the year compared to 3.8 million for the Sony PSP.
For game software, sales totaled more than $8.6 billion in the U.S. for the year, up 34% from the previous year.
The most popular games in November remained at the top of the list for December. The top-selling game of the month was "Call of Duty 4" from Activision Inc., which moved nearly 1.5 million units. Activision also had the No. 3 title for the month with "Guitar Hero III" for the PlayStation 2, which moved 1.25 million units.
Nintendo's "Super Mario Galaxy" claimed the No. 2 slot with 1.4 million units, while its "Wii Play" title sold more than one million units for the No. 4 slot. "Madden NFL 08" from Electronic Arts Inc. saw a resurgence in December with more than 655,000 units sold for the PS2.
For the year, "Halo 3" from Microsoft was the best-selling game title with more than 4.8 million units moved in the U.S. "Wii Play" moved more than 4.1 million units for the year while "Call of Duty 4" sold three million units.
Customers wait in line to purchase the Wii game console outside the Nintendo store in midtown Manhattan, New York, November 21, 2007.
(Brendan McDermid/Reuters)
In this photo provided by Nintendo Co., Wii Sports video game systems are shown Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007, as they pass through the company's distribution center in North Bend, Wash. Nintendo says it has tripled its distribution workforce to meet consumer demand for the holidays.
(AP Photo/Nintendo Co., Corky Trewin)
People try out the Wii console at a media event east of Tokyo, October 10, 2007. Nintendo and telecoms operator NTT's regional units said they would cooperate in Japan to promote the broadband Internet access for the hot-selling Wii game console.
(Yuriko Nakao/Reuters)
(Credit: Nintendo of America)
The Nintendo Wii launched more than a year ago, and the system is still incredibly hard to find. This long after the system started shipping, people are still camping in front of stores as soon as they hear about new shipments.
Friday morning, Nintendo of America's president and CEO, Reggie Fils-Aime, held a telephone press conference to address the continuing shortage of the Wii.
Fils-Aime said Nintendo hadn't expected as much demand for the Wii as they're getting. Since the launch, he claimed, Nintendo has almost doubled its global production from 1 million to 1.8 million Wiis per month, and tripled its workforce at Nintendo of America's North Bend, Wash., distribution center. The Nintendo president wouldn't say whether Nintendo would further increase its Wii production, but he denied any claims that Nintendo is stockpiling Wiis.
"There was no ability for us to stockpile systems in the summer for the holiday rush," Fils-Aime said. "Enough systems would make everyone, including me, much happier."
According to Fils-Aime, Wiis will be available next week at all major retailers. If past patterns are any indication, however, that "availability" will be limited to shoppers willing to camp out before stores open on Sunday or Monday morning. Since Christmas is just two weeks away, you're probably still going to have some difficulty finding a Wii.
While that seems to be the biggest hope for Christmas Wiis, Reggie also announced a raincheck program in conjunction with GamesStop to get more Wiis out to shoppers in January. Even if Wiis are out of stock, on December 20 and 21, consumers will be able to purchase them for January.
On those two days, if you put down the full retail price of the Wii at a GameStop, you'll receive a raincheck guaranteeing you a Wii in January. The rainchecks will be available only as supplies last, but Fils-Aime said GameStop has "many tens of thousands" of rainchecks available across its 3,000+ stores. Perhaps the Wii-hungry will be camping out next week to get a raincheck for a Wii next month. We'll find out by next Friday.
"We went into the launch with very high expectations," Fils-Aime said. "What we didn't expect was to throw out the whole playbook and essentially create a whole new level of sell-through for this industry. You can't plan for that."
REVIEW
Nintendo's next-generation console is finally here, bringing significant advances to the gaming world. While it lacks the HD (high-definition) graphics, hard disk and Blu-ray Disc drive that distinguish the upcoming Sony PlayStation 3 (don't expect to see this released in the UK until March 2007), the Wii has a few tricks up its sleeve.
Graphically the console seems to match – if not slightly surpass – the PS2. However, the Wii's standard-definition graphics leave it some way behind the PS3, which recently upgraded its graphics output to an impressive 1,080p HD, and Xbox 360.
But the Wii regains the initiative with its innovative controls. The Wii Remote (or 'Wiimote') fully immerses you in the game with its force-feedback technology and motion sensing. The latter means you must mime the actions while playing a game. Play a golf game, for instance, and you'll need to hold the controller as if it were a golf club.
You can bolt on an additional joystick-style controller called the Nunchuk to expand your options. In boxing titles, you can use the Wiimote as one glove and the Nunchuk as another.
In practice, the control system is wildly addictive, and everyone will want a go. Wii Sports is included with the console, and this demonstrates the genius of the controller. However, you may also wish to invest in a ‘classic' controller for more conventional games, such as fast-paced fighting titles.
Other games available will include Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Super Mario Galaxy and Wario Ware. But Wii isn't just about games. The console also includes Wi-Fi (but not ethernet) and can display photos, although the standard-definition drive can't yet play films – Nintendo and Sonic Solutions are working on that one.
You can browse the web and shop at gaming stores – you can even download (for a fee) classic games from previous consoles, including NES, SNES and Nintendo 64.
Verdict
Those looking for HD graphics and Blu-ray capabilities should wait for the PS3. But we think the Nintendo Wii, a fun console with a refreshingly different controller, will have a wide appeal – especially among casual gamers.
Danny Allen and Robin Morris
Apple's iPhone takes another step to becoming a business tool
Astaro Corporation is offering iPhone support to virtual private networks controlled by its Astaro Security Gateway appliance.
This support allows iPhone users to connect to such networks using their home and business networks. It means iPhone users can access email and internal sites protected by Astaro's security solution.
The company claims setting the system up requires just a few clicks to create VPN access on the Astaro appliance side.
Astaro's product offering is available commercially for business, the company also offers a free home user license which offers protection to ten IP addresses.
"As an Apple iPhone user myself, we have made it extremely easy to access networks protected by Astaro Security Gateway" said Gert Hansen, chief security architect and co-founder of Astaro. "It's a great feeling to
provide everyone with an iPhone the ability to connect to their networks for free. It turns the iPhone into a real business tool, albeit a very stylish one."
Astaro has created a configuration guide providing step-by-step instructions on how to configure Apple's iPhone and Astaro Security Gateway VPN settings.
This document as well as Astaro's free home user license download is available from the company's website.
Latest research puts iPods and iPhones in top five must-have items this season
iPods, iPhones, PSPs, and Nintendo's Wii and DS Lite seem set to be the top five electronic gadgets under European Christmas trees this year, new research claims.
comScore this morning released the results of its study (assessed during the first three weeks of November) looking into the frequency of online search inquiries for the most popular gadgets in the UK, France and Germany this Christmas.
The Nintendo Wii (with an average of 4.9 million weekly searches) seems the most in-vogue gadget this season, hotly-pursued by the iPod, which drew 3.5 million searches. The Nintendo DS Lite, the Sony Playstation PSP, and the Apple iPhone (1,706,504 searches) complete the top five.While iPod achieved 1,706,504 searches of its own, the iPod nano received an average of another 287,000 searches each week.
The most popular mobile phone was the iPhone, with the Nokia N95 and Samsung U600 its closest competitors.
ComScore assessed the figures by tracking searches across a clutch of leading electronics devices.
The case of the Nintendo Wii is a wet dream for any business. As the darling of the electronic entertainment industry for the second holiday season in a row, Nintendo is still selling out of every single Wii it makes.
The consumer public’s appetite for the Wii is so insatiable that Nintendo has pulled its usual advertising in the UK for its console in hopes to not “fuel demand” any further.
“We have been running the campaign all year round, but we want to take a responsible stance this Christmas and not fuel demand,” said a Nintendo UK spokesperson in a MarketingWeek story.
Instead, Nintendo will be using its ad space to promote the DS handheld instead of the Wii console.
The move by Nintendo UK runs contrary to the company’s North American branch, where it plans on pulling no punches when it comes to capturing the attention of consumers this holiday season.
“We're still expecting some shortages in December. But we're not going to be pilling back on our marketing,” explained George Harrison, Nintendo of America’s marketing chief. “So even though we'll be selling everything we can get, we'll continue full-blast with our outreach through PR, and through paid advertising and other things.”
Meanwhile, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime can’t find a Wii.
