In March Nintendo Wii Was Again No.1

The physically interactive Nintendo Wii pushed Sony's ballyhooed PlayStation 3 into third place in the gaming console battle. According to NPD Group, Nintendo Wii was again No. 1 in the current-generation video game console market. NPD Group said that in March consumers bought 259,000 Nintendo Wii. Microsoft’s Xbox 360 is on the second place with sales of 199,000 units. Sony is lagging behind its competitors with only 130.000 PlayStation 3 consoles sold in March.

Sony's last-generation PlayStation 2 continued to see strong sales with consumers picking up 280,000 units.

Nintendo Wii was launched in US in November 2006. According to NPD, Nintendo sold in November 2006, 476,000 units, which was more than double compared to PlayStation 3 units. (Sony sold only 197.000 units in November). During November 2006, Microsoft sold 511,000 units of its Xbox 360, according to NPD.

In February 2007 the New York-based NPD Group reported the Wii was the top-selling console video game system in February, with an estimated 335,000 units sold, outpacing the Microsoft Xbox 360 with 228,000 and the PS3 with 127,000.

The figures appeared to vindicate Nintendo's revolutionary approach which emphasized fun games aimed at casual players who could control the action using an innovative motion-detection remote control unit. In contrast Microsoft and Sony both offer higher powered and more expensive machines that feature better graphics quality and are far more expensive. Both companies also positioned their consoles as the centerpiece of a digital entertainment system.

Nintendo’s future seems better then ever as the research company IDC has predicted in a study released at the beginning of March that Nintendo's Wii will outship and outsell the 360 and PS3 in 2007 and 2008.

IDC said that Microsoft's Xbox 360 was the best selling current generation console for 2006 because it enjoyed a full year lead in the market. According to IDC’s study, called Worldwide Videogame Console Hardware and Software Forecast 2006-2011: Ready for a New Game, Nintendo, is the only one of the three manufacturers working to grow its total accessible market for its hardware and software by broadening its audience beyond the traditional market.