Sony Begins to Sell PlayStation Vita in Japan, Sells 325 Thousand Units in Two Days

From X-bit Labs: Sony Computer Entertainment has started to sell its latest PlayStation Vita portable video game console in Japan. The new device clearly pushes mobile gaming forward in terms of technology, but it remains to be seen whether it will actually be a massive success as the original PlayStation Portable or Nintendo DS. The first say sales are not too optimistic.

Sony PlayStation Vita became available in Japan on Saturday, December 17, 2011, at ¥24 980 ($325) for Wi-Fi model and ¥29 980 ($390) for 3G/Wi-Fi model. PS Vita launch was accompanied with 26 software titles along with a selection of peripherals and accessories. PS Vita 3G/Wi-Fi model support data communication prepaid plans provided by NTT Docomo in Japan.

The PlayStation Vita is clearly more advanced than any available portable game console, smartphone or tablet in terms of performance and advanced features tailored specifically for gamers and gaming. Nonetheless, it looks like the device has failed to become an immediate hit. According to Enterbrain and Media Create market tracking firms (quoted by Andriasang web-sites), Sony only managed to sell through 321 - 325 thousand 7 PS Vita units in the first two days of sales (Saturday and Sunday). By contrast, Nintendo sold 371 326 units of 3DS in the first two days of sales in Japan earlier this year, whereas Sony itself sold from 166 to over 200 thousand of original PSPs in the first day of sales in Japan back in 2004.

"The shipment was abundant, so it seems that there were hardly any reports of inability to buy due to shortages. Regarding sold units, to be honest we would like to have seen it sell a bit more, but you can say that it reached a certain level of success," said Atsushi Hosokawa, chief executive officer of Media Create.

Sony officially did not unveil any sales figures for PlayStation Vita, but said that it will be shipping 500,000 units of the 3G/Wi-Fi model as a limited edition that includes 100 hours of free 3G access. Besides, the company did stress that the PS Vita is aimed specifically at hardcore gamers, which may be considered as an implication that the company did not concentrate on broadening the market of PlayStation Portable, but rather wanted to keep existing customers initially. The company does hope that by late 2012 it will also attract casual gamers, but the question is whether those gamers will pay $249 - $299 for a handheld game console [in the U.S.].

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