Sony Encouraged by Strong Holiday 3DS Sales

This headline calls for a double take. Why in the world would Sony be happy that a competitor is selling well?

The 3DS is dead! The PlayStation Vita is dead! Who needs a dedicated gaming handheld when iPhones, iPads and Androids do gaming just fine?!?!

Remember that?

Holiday sales of Nintendo’s 3DS certainly prove that theory to be far from the truth. This makes Sony happy, because it means that this market isn’t as extinct as analysts, pundits, and regular Joe’s alike like to make it out to be.

Sony Computer Entertainment of Europe president and CEO Jim Ryan said, while speaking to MCV:

One of the encouraging things about 3DS’ sales performance at Christmas is that it is confounding the naysayers who say that there is no room in the market for a dedicated handheld gaming device. And to that extent we were encouraged by how 3DS did over the last month.

Sure, Sony would rather the PlayStation Vita be the only system raking in the dough, but the 3DS does prove that the future might not be as bleak for the PlayStation Vita – or the 3DS for that matter – as mainstream media was so quick to point out, again and again.

iPhones, iPads and other smartphones do play games, but they don’t do it anywhere near as well as the PlayStation Vita. And until they do, there will always be a market for dedicated gaming systems like the PlayStation Vita and 3DS.

What say you?

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