Study: Despite Delay, the PS3 Still Wins

Even with its twelve-month head start, the Xbox 360 will still be second to Sony's PlayStation 3 in terms of market share by 2010, research firm In-Stat said on Monday. However, In-Stat said it expects Sony's share to shrink quite a bit due to stronger competition from both companies.

The firm also found that total shipments of the next-generation consoles would be more than the current generation. This would be due to an expected widening consumer demographic, the study says.

In the end, Microsoft is expected to benefit the most from the next-generation console race, says In-Stat senior analyst Brian O'Rourke.

"[The company] will outship Nintendo in the next generation of consoles due to its head start in launching, its strength in the North American market, and its appeal to older gamers, a demographic that seems to widen with each new generation of consoles," he said.

In terms of percentages, the PlayStation 3 would have a 50.2 percent market share, followed by the Xbox 360 with 28.6 percent and the Nintendo Revolution with a 21.2 percent market share by 2010, the firm said.

By comparison, through the end of 2005, the PS2 outshipped the combined shipments of the original Xbox and GameCube by better than two to one.

The report offers some good news for Sony, whose next-generation unit will now likely be the last to launch. The Blu-ray disc drive to be included within the PS3 is central to the company's overall digital entertainment strategy. The more players in consumers hands means a better chance of success overall for the Blu-ray format in general.

O'Rourke told BetaNews that he expects shipments of the PS3 to best those of the Xbox 360 by the end of next year.