Sony managed to move a rather significant number of PS3s and PS Vitas during the U.S.' Black Friday sales week. The company announced that more than 525,000 PS3 consoles and more than 160,000 PS Vita units were sold during the timespan.
Furthermore, Sony noted that Black Friday bundle sales increased 15%, while total PS3 sales, which include hardware, software and accessories grew 9% year-over-year. The big seller was the Ultimate PlayStation Value Bundle, which included a 250GB PS3, an Uncharted Dual Pack and an inFamous Collection Pack that sold for $199. It "quickly sold out at retailers across the U.S." according to Sony.
For the PS Vita, the Assassin's Creed 3: Liberation Bundle, LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes Bundle and even the Call of Duty Black Ops: Declassifed Bundle, which were all sold at retail for $199 during the sale week, were sold out.
According to Sony Computer Entertainment America President and CEO Jack Tretton, "The PlayStation brand generated significant revenue and year-over-year growth at retail because of our focus on what gamers love most in combining amazing hardware with great games and digital entertainment." He also adds, "We're very pleased with the Black Friday sales results, especially the incredible reception for the PS3 and PS Vita bundles. The demand was very strong which quickly depleted our inventory across retailers nationwide."
Finally, aside from the healthy hardware figures, Sony also saw PlayStation Plus subscriptions jump 259% compared to last year's Black Friday sales period. In relation to that, since the introduction of the "Instant Game Collection" earlier this year, customer satisfaction rates for the paid service are now above 95% according to Sony.
For reference, Microsoft managed to shift 750,000 Xbox 360 units during Black Friday's sales week. But regardless if it's lower, moving more than 600,000 units of hardware in a week is no small feat, no?
Are you one of the many people who snatched up a PS3 or a PS Vita during Black Friday? How's your experience so far?
Thanks, GamesIndustry
