Sony Aims To Surpass PSP Install Base With NGP

Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kaz Hirai said in a recent interview that one of his company's goals with the recently-unveiled NGP is to match or surpass the install base of Sony's current PSP handheld. "I think one of the things that we certainly want to try to accomplish with NGP [is] match ... the installed base that we have on PSP worldwide, but over and above that, try to go beyond that," Hirai told Europe's PlayStation Blog. He said that partnerships with external third-party studios, software from internal Sony World Wide Studios developers and the NGP's unique features will help make the handheld competitive with Nintendo's 3DS handheld, which launches this quarter. The PSP first released in Japan in December 2004, and has since shipped over 65 million hardware units worldwide. Currently available on the market is the UMD-based PSP-3000 and the download-only PSP Go. Sony said it plans to release the codenamed NGP before the end of the year. The company has yet to announce a price for the handheld, although one analyst said he expects it to sell for $299 or higher in the U.S. The NGP will have high-end features including 3G and wi-fi support, a five-inch multi-touch OLED display, a multi-touch pad on the back, dual analog sticks, flash card support for software, motion sensors, built-in GPS and a four-core CPU, among other features. "It's very important that we have a very stable platform that is in it for the long haul," Hirai added. "That means that we're providing a very compelling value to the consumer in that once they invest in our products, it doesn't go by the wayside in two years or three years, but they're able to really enjoy that particular console for a very long time." "It's my expectation that the NGP is going to have a similar sort of lifespan, if you will, in the portable space as well," he said.