Sony's Stringer: Wii is Expensive

The Wii, apparently, is not a competitor to the PlayStation 3. So says Sony's CEO, Howard Stringer.

Speaking in an interview, Stringer said, "I've played a Nintendo Wii. I don't see it as a competitor. It's more of an expensive niche game device. We're selling a lot of PlayStation 3s now and it's still the best way to buy a Blu-ray player.''

An "expensive niche game device"? What does that even mean? With the Wii weighing in as the best-selling console so far this generation, not to mention the fact it's reaching a broader audience than the PS3 and Xbox 360, it seems to have a pretty big "niche". "Game device", we'll certainly allow that, but can Sony really get away with calling it expensive, whether it's a competitor or not?

Also, bear in mind that Microsoft's official price drop for the 60Gb Xbox 360 certainly puts its gaming platform at a more competitive level in terms of price.

Price (and delays) have been the bugbear of the PS3 release since its launch and Stringer knows it. With no price-cut on the horizon if we are to believe Sony Corporation's CFO, Nobuyuki Oneda, it looks at if Stringer's language is tactical to say the least.

Beneath that inflammatory statement, however, Stringer isn't unreasonable to indicate that any competition between the Wii and PS3 isn't all that direct. The average person with a love for Wii Fit was never that likely to want to play Metal Gear Solid 4.

Meanwhile, Sony Computer Entertainment America's senior VP of marketing and PlayStation network, Peter Dille, acknowledged the false start the PS3 got in life. Mentioning the console's early lack of availability in the US, Dille said, "That's not a formula for success. Once you create the demand and aren't able to deliver, you create a situation where it stalls.'' His forthrightness almost managed to cleanse SPOnG's palate.

^{Source: Bloomberg}