Analyst: Xbox 360 sales "below expectations"
In speaking with Next-Gen, analyst Colin Sebastian claims that Xbox 360 sales are "below current market expectations" despite sufficient inventory supplies of the system after meeting pent-up demand from earlier shortages. "Based on year-to-date sell-through trends in North America, we believe sales of Microsoft's Xbox 360 console are tracking closer to 4.5 million units for the year versus current market expectations in the 5-million unit range," said Sebastian.
The investment banker noted, however, that with limited availability of the PS3 and possibly the Wii this holiday season, Microsoft's second generation console could see a spike in sales. Even still, the analyst decreased sales estimates for the 360, Xbox, Nintendo GameCube, GBA, and PSP while increasing expectations for Wii, DS, and PS2. The report made no mention of Sony's big, perty PS3, though.
