Sony (NYSE:SNE) recent revealed that international sales of the Sony PlayStation Vita have surpassed the 1.2 million mark ever since the mobile game console was introduced last December in Japan. However the company did not give the specific details on the sales of the device for each country. Software sales for the Sony PlayStation Vita have also reached the two million mark on the PlayStation Network and in retail outlets.
Sony also revealed that the expectations of the life cycle of the Sony PlayStation Vita were exceeded once the mobile game console is introduced in the European and US market. The company revealed the sales of the mobile game console following revelations that only 321,400 units of the Sony PlayStation Vita were sold on the first two days of availability in the market. In comparison around 371,000 units of the Nintendo 3DS were sold in the same period.
Industry watchers are anticipating an increase in the competition between the two mobile game consoles as the Sony PlayStation Vita enters the international market. The last time the two game console companies competed in the market, Nintendo (TYO:7974) came out on top as the Nintendo DS surpassed the sales of the Sony PlayStation Portable.
The Sony PlayStation Vita features dual thumb sticks along with the same action buttons for the PlayStation on the right. The device also features a 5-inch OLED screen that can be used as a touchscreen, Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity, and cameras in front and the back. The Sony PlayStation Vita also features touchpads that reportedly enhances hand control.
The Wi-Fi only model of the Sony PlayStation Vita is priced at around $250 while the 3G model has a price tag of around $300. Observers have indicated that Sony may have to reduce the price of the Sony PlayStation Vita once sales start to dip in the same way the Nintendo 3DS sales went down following its launch in the market.
Nintendo was able to prop back its sales by reducing the price of its mobile game console, a move which the Sony may follow for the Sony PlayStation Vita once it faces decreasing sales in the international market.
