Microsoft has sold more than 30 million units of its flagship console game platform, the Xbox 360, the company announced today. For the year to date, Xbox sales are up 28 percent over the same period in 2008, which is a bigger increase than those seen by Sony with its Playstation 3 and even Nintendo with its blockbuster Wii console, the company says.
In addition, the Redmond, WA-based software giant said that its Xbox Live service, which connects Xbox players to an online store and to other players over the Internet, now has 20 million subscribers, making it “the world’s largest global entertainment network,” in its words.
By highlighting the news this week, Microsoft may be trying to shore up mindshare for its four-year-old console in advance of next week’s E3 gaming expo in Los Angeles. Don Mattrick, senior vice president of Microsoft’s interactive entertainment division, said in today’s release that the company will be making announcements at E3 that “underscore our commitment to bringing blockbuster entertainment experiences to everyone and to growing the Xbox entertainment brand globally.”
Comparing total unit sales of the Xbox 360 to total sales for the Nintendo Wii, however, shows how far Microsoft would have to go to catch up with the global Wii phenomenon. According to a story yesterday at the video game industry news site VGChartz, Nintendo recently sold its 50 millionth Wii, making it the fastest-selling console in history. The Wii has been on the market for 130 weeks, compared to more than 200 weeks for the Xbox 360; at the equivalent point in its history, sales of the Xbox 360 totaled only 18 million units.
