Video Game Sales Slide 19 Percent In October [Voices]
By Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron’s, Tech Trader Daily
The U.S. video game industry had sales of $1.07 billion in October, down 19 percent from $1.32 billion a year ago, according to market research firm NPD Group. Hardware sales fell 23 percent in the month versus a year ago, with software off 18 percent, and accessories down 2 percent. The slide could be a disappointment for investors, after a 1 percent year-over-year increase in September, which had broken a string of six-straight down months.
Among hardware consoles, the Nintendo Wii regains the top spot, after a one-month edge for the Sony (SNE) PlayStation 3 in September. Sales for the Wii were 506,900 units, followed by 320,600 for the PS3, 249,700 for the Microsoft (MSFT) Xbox 360, and 117,800 for the PS2.
