Sony: PS3 Shipments Arriving, 1 Million Still 2006 U.S. Goal

Sony has issued an official statement on the launch of the PlayStation 3 console in North America, indicating that new systems are being airlifted in weekly, and that they "couldn't be more pleased" with the response from consumers. According to Sony's statement, the initial allocation of systems "sold out within hours", and the biggest selling game of the PS3 launch were Insomniac's Resistance: Fall of Man, followed by EA title Madden '07. The $599 60GB model was the top selling SKU (over the $499 20GB model), and Sony remarked that the buzz around the PS3 had "a halo effect on other PlayStation products", noting that PSP week-over-week sales increased +29% at the company's top 5 retailers (week ending Nov. 20), and PS2 week-over-week sales increased +24% at the company's top 5 retailers (week ending Nov. 20). For those waiting to purchase PS3s in North America, after overwhelming launch demand, Sony revealed that "PS3s will be airlifted in to the U.S. on a weekly basis through the end of the year. A new shipment has already arrived and will be available at retail by Black Friday." The company also re-iterated its goals for the end of the year, though did not comment on specific amounts of PS3s shipped thus far: "We are still focused on reaching our goal of 1 million units in the pipeline by Dec. 31 in the U.S." The full statement from Sony's PR head David Karraker regarding the launch is as follows: "Sony Computer Entertainment America couldn’t be more pleased with the response we have seen from consumers since the launch of PLAYSTATION 3 on Friday. This truly demonstrates the power of the PlayStation brand and further validates our belief that consumers see real value in an entertainment system that will define the next decade of digital entertainment." "At this point, we are focused on getting as many new PS3s to the North American market as possible for the holidays, including airlifting systems to the territory on a constant basis. With PS3 manufacturing now running smoothly and product being aired in weekly, we're focused on our goal of shipping a million units to retail by the end of the calendar year. Due to the immediate nature of these shipments, we will not be providing weekly updates on North American supplies."