Can 11 million PS3s bring Sony CE back into black?

In an interview published over the weekend in Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper, Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kazuo Hirai said he expects global PS3 sales to top 11 million by the end of March.

While hitting the 11 million mark won't put the PS3 above Nintendo and Microsoft, it does bring Sony closer to its rivals, which is important to encourage development on the platform. The company recently slashed the price of its software development kit.

Sony has seen tremendous success in both Japan and abroad since introducing a lower price 40GB model last month. The PS3 reportedly outsold the Nintendo Wii in Japan during November, and sales tripled in the United States after Thanksgiving.

Still, Sony knows that games are everything if such success is to continue. Hirai told the paper that the PS3, "is starting afresh as a console to play games with...we would like to put our strength in the number of software games."

Sony Computer Entertainment's fiscal 2008 ends in March, and the company has nearly 4 million consoles to sell by that time. But with ample supply available around the world for the holidays and supply of the Wii constricted, Sony is confident it will hit the target, while at the same time returning the PlayStation division to profitability.

According to current statistics from VG Chartz, Nintendo has sold over 16 million Wiis worldwide, while Microsoft has sold around 14.5 million Xbox 360 consoles.