Microsoft responds to April 2008 NPD results

Microsoft has released a statement regarding the recent April 2008 NPD sales results. The company had a lot to say about the numbers including how it helped boost Xbox Live membership and more. To find out what they had to say, head on over to the full article by clicking on the “read more” link below.

The April 2008 NPD sales results are out. Microsoft, the creator of Xbox 360, has released a statement regarding the numbers that the NPD group has revealed.

Microsoft pointed out that the Xbox 360 has sold 10.1 million units in the U.S. This feat makes the console the first current generation unit to break the 10 million barrier in the aforementioned region. The company also released a set of details that they would like the to stress:

• 188,000 Xbox 360 consoles were sold in April. (April NPD data)
• Xbox 360 has a record-setting attach rate of 7.6 games per console, the highest attach rate in history for a console at this point in its lifecycle. (April NPD data)
• Consumers have spent more than US$ 9.7 billion on the Xbox 360 experience. (April NPD data)
• Xbox 360 titles accounted for US$ 186 million of all third party game sales this generation, or 53% of share. (April NPD data)
• Xbox 360 games accounted for three of the top ten games in April, and secured the #1 spot with “Grand Theft Auto IV.” (April NPD data)
• Not only are we selling more games, games play better on the Xbox 360. Xbox 360 has 91 titles with a Metacritic review score of 80 or higher, compared to just 50 for PS3 and 22 for Wii.

The company said that the release of Grand Theft Auto 4 (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) has helped boost Xbox Live memberships to 12 million users and that Xbox 360 consoles saw a 54% increase week-over-week because when it came out. They also had a little something to say about the sales of GTA IV itself on both platforms:

In its first five days on the market, the Xbox 360 version of “Grand Theft Auto IV” sold 1.8 million units, outselling the other platform’s version by nearly 2:1 in the U.S., and making it the top selling game in April. (April NPD data)

With Microsoft’s 2008 line-up of games, including Gears of War 2, Fable 2, and Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise, it hopes to pull away from the competition and establish itself as the dominant force in the market. A move that their other two competitors may have something to say about.

Via Team Xbox