Hirai confident of eventual PS3 victory

Thus far, 2008 has been a banner year for Sony's PlayStation 3. After being roundly thumped at retail by Microsoft's Xbox 360 last year, Sony's flagship console bested its archrival in unit sales for the US in January and February, and finished 5,000 consoles shy of Microsoft in March. The console's resurgence can be attributed to a myriad of reasons, not the least of which being Blu-ray's victory in the high-def video format war, which every PS3 comes equipped with, and the publisher's recent revamp of the PlayStation Network.

As part of Sony's PlayStation Day event in London yesterday, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe chief David Reeves said that the PlayStation 3 has overtaken the Xbox 360 in the region--despite launching roughly 15 months after its rival. Speaking to the BBC today, SCE group president and CEO Kaz Hirai said he believes it is only a matter of time before the PlayStation 3 can claim a similar distinction elsewhere in the world.

"We've only really begun to scratch the surface with PlayStation 3, but I am confident that given the long life-cycle we have planned for the machine, we are going to have a very good install base in all of the major territories," said Hirai. "I am very confident that after the 10-year life cycle, we will have the install base that we are looking for, and that is obviously to be in the leadership position."

Running counter to statements made by former SCE chief Ken Kutaragi last May, Hirai also said that it is difficult to see what is in store for future iterations of a PlayStation-branded console. "We need to take a look at advances in technology in various areas, such as semiconductors, graphics chips, output devices, mainly TV and monitors, to see where we would like to benchmark our next-generation product," observed Hirai.

In the BBC interview, Hirai also addressed early controversies surrounding the quality and quantity of PS3 games. "That situation has been remedied to the satisfaction of consumers," stated Hirai. "The software line-up is looking good for this year and certainly for the holiday period. I think [developers] are beginning to embrace the technology and are able to express their creativity on the platform certainly more than they were able to at launch."