US: Xbox 360 outsells PS3 by 3-to-1

The Xbox 360 enjoyed a successful Black Friday as it recorded record-breaking sales in the US, outselling rival console PS3 by a ratio of three-to-one.

Retailers reported the console’s sales were on track to outperform previous years, estimating a 25 per cent increase in hardware sales when compared to the same weekend in 2007, according to a Microsoft press release.

Software sales also contributed to Microsoft’s success on one of the biggest shopping weekends of the year, with key titles such as Gears Of War 2, Fable II and Lips bolstering the Xbox 360’s position as the console with the highest attach rate, with an average of 8.1 games per console sold.

Don Mattrick, Microsoft’s senior vice president of Interactive Entertainment Business, said: We entered into the Black Friday sales period with cautious optimism, knowing that dollar for dollar, Xbox 360 offers more social entertainment value than any other console on the market.

Record Black Friday sales in the US, coupled with our existing global install base of 25 million and an online community of more than 14 million Xbox Live members, have laid the groundwork for continued global sales momentum in 2009.”

Microsoft has reported a surge in worldwide hardware sales since lowering the console’s price in September, leading to an increase of 400 per cent in Europe.