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NPD retracts November numbers

Industry research group yanks monthly report, citing "overstated information."

For the past several days, clouds have been gathering over the gaming world. That's because late last week, several major analysts predicted November 2005 had seen a major year-on-year drop in game sales. Some estimates went as far to forecast a whopping 16-percent drop in sales, thanks to a lack of blockbuster titles like Halo 2 and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

Today, though, it appeared that the doom and gloom was premature. The market research firm NPD Group, considered the top statistics firm in the game business, issued a report that said the sector saw only a modest 3.6-percent year-on-year decrease in software sales. The report said the month saw $818 million in games sold from October 30 to November 26, versus $849 million in software sales during the same period in 2004.

The NPD report also claimed to have the first official numbers of hardware sales for the Xbox 360, which hit North America on November 22. According to NPD, approximately 332,000 units of the next-gen consoles were sold from November 22 to November 26, when the report ends--a total of five days on the market. By contrast, Sony's PSP, which launched in the US and Canada on March 24, sold around 602,000 units during its first seven days in stores.

However, within hours of its release, the report was promptly retracted by NPD. "It has come to our attention that the November 2005 video games data released today contained overstated information," read an e-mail sent out to NPD subscribers. The company said it would "review the reasons behind the overstated numbers immediately," but did not have an estimate as to when the corrected November figures would be released.

NPD's silence led to speculation on the part of analysts who had already received the report. One noticed that while the company usually claims to collect 63 percent of sales data, in November it claimed to collect 53 percent. He reasoned this was the cause of "dramatically higher" numbers than usual, and that when the corrected numbers are released, they will be much closer to the previous, pessimistic forecasts. It could also mean that Xbox 360 sales could come in under the 332,000-unit figure cited in the report.

28 Comments

  • darkside5001

    Posted Dec 20, 2005 9:40 pm GMT

    Hehe... Martha Stewart.

  • CyphenX

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 9:22 pm GMT

    A) I agree with the "defective systems aren't as numerous as widely believed." -
    B) Can't we all just get along? which leads to c:
    C) Lets all just hope and maybe thingls will turn out for the best (whatever that "best" might be...)

  • MViper24

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 11:37 am GMT

    The transition to the newer consoles and the impending launch of the PS3/Rev are some reasons the market might be in a slump. The fact that no blockbuster titles on par with Halo 2 and San Andreas were released, as was stated in the article, also factors in. I wouldn't worry too much about it. And to the people that talk about the 360s being rampantly defective, its BS. Myself and 18 of my friends managed to pick one up a piece and have had no problems with any of them.

  • Manakrain

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 10:44 am GMT

    I agree a %150 with LurkerCreep. While many people say there X-box 360's are defective, they have no way to prove it, or to show they even have one in the first place. Those who do have defectives, are, again like LurkerCreep mentioned "Vocal". Those who "wish they had" or "loathe" X-box 360, will say they also had defectives? Why? Because they feel since they don't have one, no one else should buy it either (Kinda makes sense, if you make many people think it sucks, then no one will buy it, leaving it all for you, although, they "phailed")

    Peace, Manakra

  • ZeTecThreaT

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 10:19 am GMT

    Thats the nail in the coffin.Microsoft has been throwing out mad Propaganda before and after launch,Now the shut up NPD becuase they released there wack numbers.Man I think that about does it for me and my affair with the Xbox.

  • LurkerCreep

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 9:23 am GMT

    Regardless of what's being posted in the forums, "defective" 360's aren't as rampant as people are making it out to be. It just appears that way because the people with defective systems are the most vocal (understandablely so, I might add). The people with problem free systems (which include myself) really have no reason to post that their system is perfectly ok... I mean, DUH, that's what is expected, so it's not exactly 'news worthy'. And let's be honest, you know that a percentage of people having problems are at fault due to improper placement of their system and/or the atomic powerplant that is the 360's power supply. They're cramming the console into a confined bookshelf or entertainment center... or, worse yet, setting them on the carpet. RTFM people!! Dispute it all you want, but I'm certain that another percentage of the forum posts are from gamers who failed to obtain a 360 and are just pissing gasoline onto the fire outta pure spite. God knows there are already enough MS haters out there.

  • a55assin

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 8:08 am GMT

    I'm pretty sure 360 isn't going to sell so much now after all those people complaining about overheating and such...i was going to buy it after a month or 2 but now im not buying it no matter what...so the conclusion...MS sucks

  • SavoyPrime

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 7:39 am GMT

    It will be interesting to see what the final numbers are.

  • thekey

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 4:53 am GMT

    Righto
    LurkerCreep!

  • thekey

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 4:51 am GMT

    Only Microsoft knows its official numbers so I'm not going to go with(or trust) NPD's numbers exactly. The 360 is going to do well weather you all like it or not, and it might not fail in Japan. Just because Xbox one failed doesn't mean 360 will fail we just don't know how Japan will react to it.

    It might take the 3incrination of XBOX before they get it right (In Japan) or maybe never, who knows?

  • LurkerCreep

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 11:16 pm GMT

    As much as I hate to say it.... it's starting to look like all the recent talk about a 2nd game market crash aren't just the grumblings of a few Chicken Littles clucking that the game market sky is falling. Hopefully, the worst (i.e.: best) thing to happen will be a thinning of the game company herd... where the 'weak sauce' companies that constantly release lackluster, half-baked games collapse under the weight of their own mediocrity. Survival of the fittest. People also don't seem to remember that the transition year between console generations has always been accompanied by a sales slump as consumers stop buying games for the current gen consoles in anticipation for the new consoles on the horizon. At least I pray that's the case this time.

  • Hardknock

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 9:39 pm GMT

    Why is gamespot only mentioning Xbox 360? The retracted numbers could be for any of the other systems as well.

  • reallaughingman

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 9:08 pm GMT

    well how interesting....

  • 2ez24get

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 9:07 pm GMT

    Bleh. I'm surprised to see the figures for the 360 to even be this high.

  • Smartiepants

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 7:22 pm GMT

    Just take a look on any retail website. It's clear the 360 has been a sellout; eBay prices are still ridiculous. However many units were sold is however many were available - the figures are meaningless until stores actually have a regular supply of stock and the console is easily available.

  • The_Magical_Man

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 7:07 pm GMT

    obviously yes

  • BassForever2

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 7:01 pm GMT

    Does anyone really care about this stuff?

  • The_Magical_Man

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 6:58 pm GMT

    Does anyone remember the mumbers of the first week for the launches of the PS2 and the Xbox?

  • bossjimbob

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 6:49 pm GMT

    petegrrr, how do you claim to know how many units Japan is getting? Can you cite some sources that aren't your own opinion? Why not wait until the actual numbers for all three markets are released and production catches up to demand before people comment either way?

  • petegrrrr

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 6:08 pm GMT

    well, since they made over 332,000 for american release (heck, japan gets 300,000 at launch...and there JAPAN. Home of the people who never by MS products)..... it seems that you are wrong aa7

    and since that figure is going down, who knows.

    I do know for a fact that many retailers are holding off on selling all their stock until the next shipments arive (my friend at the local best buy says their store has 12 units they're waiting for teh next shipment to sell, in hopes of getting more bundle deals from desperate fanboys)

  • CyphenX

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 6:07 pm GMT

    Ah, also... forever_blank wrote: "Hmmmm, It Would Seem MiCrOsOfT, did not do that good.... good, but not phenomanal." It's did not do that well. *gets beaten thoroughly for correcting grammar*

  • CyphenX

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 6:05 pm GMT

    Well, considering huge shortages, it would be hard to outsell the PSP, which was so well stocked that there were still full shelves of the units all thoroughout the first week. I also can't wait to hear the last word on this story... *anticipates*

  • AA7

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 6:04 pm GMT

    I think microsoft is doing amazingly well, if there were more xbox 360's to sell they would be sold.

  • forever_blank

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 5:57 pm GMT

    Hmmmm, It Would Seem MiCrOsOfT, did not do that good.... good, but not phenomanal.

  • henkvn

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 5:52 pm GMT

    oh my....oh my. Something is afoot. Cant' wait to hear the final numbers.

  • justnotme92

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 5:44 pm GMT

    We all know who is behind all this..... *Damn you, Martha Stewart*

  • dvader654

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 5:38 pm GMT

    Its just a big trap to catch Bunkum.

  • rtehrani

    Posted Dec 8, 2005 5:27 pm GMT

    interesting.....

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