media strategies
Latest
Study: Wii winning the online buzz battle
Ah, buzz, that unquantifiable aura of cool that can make or break a product launch. Wait, did I just say unquantifiable? I'm sorry, it's apparently highly quantifiable, as proven by a New Media Strategies report that finds online opinions of the Wii to be much more favorable than those of the PS3.According to a MediaLife interview with New Media Strategies VP Sam Huxley, the Arlington, Va., market research firm "monitored 10,000 online conversations," and found a surprisingly hostile reaction to Sony's well-hyped system. Conversations about the PS3 broke 27 percent positive and 38 percent negative, according to the report, while Wii conversations were scored 49 percent positive and only 18 percent negative (the remaining conversations were rated "neutral").Huxley cites availability and pricing issues as being responsible for most of the negative reaction to the PS3, and says the system was also hurt by not launching with any familiar franchises. In contrast, Huxley said the Wii received a lot of positive buzz for its new control method and Zelda, though some faulted the system for being hard to get used to. Despite the all the PS3 negativity, though, "the volume of discussion on PS3 is about double of that of Wii," Huxley said.The study's methodology is not discussed in the interview, and there is likely some subjectivity in the evaluation of the online conversations. It should also be noted that internet chatter is not necessarily indicative of opinions for the public at large. Still, it seems that all-important buzz balance might be tilting in Nintendo's favor at this early phase in the console wars.Previously: USA Today on favorable Wii buzz, early holiday winners
