14 DAY TRIAL // Can't they just get along? After all, the Microsoft Xbox 360 and the Sony PlayStation 3 could begin defining themselves as being very different from each other and admit that they are basically targeting separate audiences. But the fact that the Nintendo Wii is selling quite a lot more consoles than they do, making a lot of money and forcing Sony and Microsoft to compete for second spot makes the companies and their executives manifest themselves like kids fighting over who's best on the playground.
Kaz Hirai, the boss of Sony Computer Entertainment, told the Official PlayStation Magazine that his company was the “official” leader of the gaming console industry, probably based on the amazing sales numbers posted by the last gen PlayStation 2, while also saying that the Xbox 360 would have “longevity issues” allowing the PS3 to catch up as far as sales go.
Now, Aaron Greenberg, the leader of the Xbox 360 division at Microsoft, has shot back, saying that Hirai's statements are only further evidence that Sony feels that it is losing the battle for second place in the current gen console competition. He told the BitBag blog that “This sounds like an old hardware company that’s comfortable with its market position. That complacent attitude is out of touch with where the industry and consumer is today. This generation won’t be won over just hardware specs, but who can out-innovate when it comes to online and software.”
He also did a quick round of crunching numbers to show off the fact that, taking into account the current difference in install base between the two consoles, it would take Sony until 2014 to close the gap, even if PlayStation 3 sales doubled tomorrow, while Xbox 360 sales stayed completely flat for the next five years. That's some tough talk and there's no doubt that Sony will feel pressed to shoot back with some statement, which will most likely arrive tomorrow.