Blurred Keys

Gamesindustry.biz editor points to confusing reporting of new console war

- “North America is still the only territory where the Xbox 360 has seen major success”

Rob Fahey, editor of Gamesindustry.biz, claims that in the new console war pro-Microsoft reporting is “influenced heavily by the American dominance of English-language media”, and that “whereas the Xbox 360 has sold 3.3 million units in North America, it has sold only 1.3 million in Europe and just 400,000 elsewhere”. Pointing to the PlayStation’s broader appeal with different demographic worldwide, but criticizing the firm’s “arrogance”.

In a dig at the mainstream media and analysts, as well as real “fanboys”, Fahey says “Fanboy arguments supported by misconception and exaggeration abound - and that's just in the mainstream media and among analysts. What's going on in Internet forums makes even less sense”.

Gamesindustry.biz is a business-focused computer games site published by Eurogamer Network, the site has a greater industry-based worldwide reach then their sister consumer site Eurogamer.net, both sites are seen to be highly respected. The firm recently launched Eurogamer.tv a trailer and video interview service, and are soon to launch a German spin-off, Eurogamer.de. Eurogamer.net prides their self as being the only ABC tracked games website, last year MD, Rupert Loman said, "we hope that the other games sites will follow our lead to help further increase the credibility of the online advertising sector for the benefit of all."

Last week a Games Toaster / Blurred Keys report of the Irish multi-format games charts found that the PlayStation is very much so the leading player in Ireland. With multi-format games, Microsoft’s consoles combined cannot even compete with Sony’s PlayStation Portable.

PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable continue to dominate Irish games charts

PlayStation Portable alone still frequently outranks Xbox & 360 in percentage sales  

A GamesToaster.com / BlurredKeys.com examination of the Chart-Track Irish Software charts, which tracks retail sales of computer games in Ireland, has found that Sony’s PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable continue to massively dominate the Irish multi-format charts, with Microsoft’s Xbox and Xbox 360 combined rarely amounting to over 25% of multi-format games.

Our study of the charts ranges from the start of 2006 to the week ending July 15.

When the combined percentages of the Xbox consoles reach higher percentages the games are usually at the lower end of the charts. Frequently the percentage of the two combined is lower then or around 10%.

Rip-off Ireland please, because you can

From my article on Games Toaster…

"After lengthy questioning by Games Toaster, Microsoft has maintained VAT is the reason for the extra charge on Irish consumers [for the Xbox 360]... However, for some unknown reason, consumers in Belgium [with the same VAT rate] will only be charged the general euro price..."

Illegal downloaders, but best customers?

Napster - the original face of illegal downloading, now turned legal.

Most ‘illegal downloaders’ are among the industries’ best customers, or so it seems...

Before recently Blurred Keys hadn’t much concrete to go on, but as it turns out the feedback we have got in the past from the majority of downloaders of music, games, films, and TV programs, is probably a correct view of the real situation. In that ‘illegal downloaders’ also buy loads of DVDs, CDs, concert tickets, and cinema tickets, they watch TV, listen to radio, and frequent establishments which pay royalties - all adding up to the fact that most are the industries’ best customers.

A new research backs this up – “According to the 2005 Speakerbox survey, people who share or download music from illegal sites spend up to four times as much on legitimate music sites than other music fans” - electricnews.net.

That’s not to say there aren’t people who will download illegally and never pay a penny for music, there are. But the overall impact of P2P downloading is grossly being exaggerated by the concerned industries.

A recent report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development agrees, “Digital music piracy is acknowledged as a problem by the OECD but the report cites other factors -- such as the rise in the number of entertainment sources -- as being more likely to have had a significant impact on music sales” - electricnews.net.

If you were to believe a lot of the downloaders, P2P actually has increased their spend on music, and other entertainment. For others, their media consumption just far outweighs what they can afford and this is partly backed by the rise in the number of entertainment sources, as cited by the OECD.

It’s also as well to point out, in past years where the music industry were shooting about the decline in sales, but unlike the US, CD sales were actually up in Ireland – or so claimed the Irish Times’ ‘the Ticket’ supplement. In addition France, Germany, Japan, and the UK also “experienced steady or growing CD sales”, according to an ElectricNews.net article. Meanwhile going wildly unchanged, the word of the reverent industries is accepted as fact by a worrying amount of journalists.