UPDATE: US Videogame Sales Fall 23% In April
15 5월 2009 - 8:22AM
Dow Jones News
U.S. videogame sales fell 23% in April, which is worse than some
had expected, while game console sales stumbled, NPD Group reported
Thursday.
The poor performance was due to the slowing economy, few
blockbuster releases during the month and a tough comparison with a
year-ago period that featured several breakaway hit games. Sales of
Nintendo Co. Ltd.'s (NTDOY) new DSi handheld, and the Easter
holiday that generates an uptick in game and console sales kept
things from being worse.
NPD reported that U.S. spending on videogames fell to $510
million in April, which is worse than the 17% drop expected by
Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter, but in line with the
expectations of Lazard Capital Markets' Colin Sebastian.
Videogame console sales were driven largely by Nintendo's new
handheld, the DSi, which Nintendo said sold about 800,000 units
during the month, and represented nearly a third of all console
sales. But sales of Nintendo' Wii were off about 52%, and Sony
Corp. (SNE) PS3 sales fell by nearly a third. Sales of Xbox 360s
from Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) held up a little better, but it still
sold fewer units than last April, NPD reported.
While the recession is taking its toll, a major challenge for
the videogame industry continues to be the difficult comparison
with the previous year. Sales this April are being compared with a
month in which Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.'s (TTWO) "Grand
Theft Auto IV" and a "Mario" game for Nintendo's Wii were
introduced and went on to sell millions of copies in the month. The
games generated large sales of consoles as well.
"There was nothing similar from a new title standpoint to drive
growth over those numbers," said Reggie Fils-Aime, president of
Nintendo of America.
This is the second consecutive month that videogame sales have
disappointed. Wall Street analysts had expected sales to remain
flat in March, but games and console sales fell around 17%
each.
Regardless of the month-to-month softness, NPD analyst Anita
Frazier said the industry is showing a recession resilience and
things should be brighter in May. "While the continued difficult
economic environment is a factor to consider, video games is the
category that consumers tell us they're least likely to cut their
spending on in coming months," she said.
In Thursday's trading, Sony shares added 1.6% to $26.26,
Microsoft added 1.6% to $20.06.
-By Ben Charny, Dow Jones Newswires; 415-765-8230;
ben.charny@dowjones.com