VIDEO-GAME COMPANIES CONSOLED BY 23% JUMP IN SALES PORTABLES, NEW TITLES SPARK GROWTH.Byline: Candice Choi Staff Writer Portable video games See video game console. and an array of hot new titles spurred a first-quarter sales boom of 23 percent, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. figures released Monday. From consoles to software to accessories, sales industrywide reached $2.2 billion between January and March, according to the NPD Group The NPD Group, Inc. is a leading global market research company[1] founded in 1967 and provides consumer and retail information to manufacturers and retailers. Using actual sales data from retailers and distributors as well as consumer-reported purchasing behavior, NPD in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . Nearly all segments of the market recorded double-digit or triple-digit growth. ``You'd think at this point sales of consoles would be flat since companies are getting ready to launch new consoles,'' said David Riley, analyst with the NPD Group. ``But we're seeing positive growth across all categories - that's very rare.'' Popular new titles like ``Gran Turismo For other uses of "Gran Turismo", see Gran Turismo (disambiguation). Gran Turismo is Italian for Grand Touring or "Grand Tourisme." in reference to the Grand Tour. The GT naming tradition comes from Italy, eg. Alfa Romeo and Ferrari named often their cars as Gran Turismo. 4'' and portable gaming devices are driving the runaway sales phenomenon. The number of portable game units sold grew by 72 percent in the first quarter, while sales from portable units jumped by 162 percent, to $293 million. Much of that spike can be attributed to the North American North American named after North America. North American blastomycosis see North American blastomycosis. North American cattle tick see boophilusannulatus. launch of the PlayStation Portable. The handheld device, which also stores digital photos and plays music, generated long lines In communications, circuits that are capable of handling transmissions over long distances. of anxious fans outside stores nationwide when it was released last month. Sony shipped 1 million units to North America North America, third largest continent (1990 est. pop. 365,000,000), c.9,400,000 sq mi (24,346,000 sq km), the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. , but retailers across the country reported being sold out mere hours after the device hit shelves. In March alone, sales of portable gaming units reached $201.5 million, a staggering 324 percent increase from the same time a year ago. ``That tells you something,'' Riley said. Worldwide, the portable gaming industry last year was valued at $4.5 billion by DFC DFC - A dataflow language. ["Data Flow Language DFC: Design and Implementation", S. Toshio et al, Systems and Computers in Japan, 20(6):1- 10 (Jun 1989)]. Intelligence, a San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. market-research firm. That figure is set to double to $9 billion this year. Console software still accounts for the lion's share of industry sales. Games raked in more than $1 billion, or nearly half, of first-quarter sales industrywide. The introduction of some highly anticipated titles such as ``Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'' and ``Halo 2'' captured much media attention and sales, said Keith Boesky, a consultant on the video-game industry for Boesky & Company. ``Software definitely drives sales; it can be the reason people buy the hardware,'' Riley said. When a highly anticipated game is released exclusively on PlayStation 2, for example, many consumers will rush out to buy the console rather than wait to see whether the game is released on the platform they already own. The industry's ballooning sales figures go beyond the hype of new games and devices. A broader range of age groups is playing video games these days - particularly adult men, Boesky said. Many of those who grew up playing video game are continuing the habit into their adult years, he said. The industry, which is only about 20 years old, is growing at a rapid clip. In 2004, the video-game industry in the United States was valued at $11.3 billion, up from $8.1 billion in 2000, according to the NPD Group. The first quarter is widely regarded as a good time for software sales, as people flock to stores to buy games for the new consoles they received over the holidays. That doesn't mean sales will slow down anytime soon. Microsoft's new Xbox, variously dubbed Xbox 2 and Xbox 360, is slated for release later this year, which analysts say will likely lead to another spike. Candice Choi, (818) 713-3634 candice.choi(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): box Box: PLAYING GAMES SOURCE: The NPD Group |
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