eBay: 15,000 PS3s, 27,000 Wiis Sold On Service In First Week

Following the much-hyped launches of the PlayStation 3 and Wii, popular online auction service eBay has released data on total numbers and average eBay selling prices for both consoles since the November 17th and November 19th launches. Looking at the PlayStation 3, eBay officials note that from November 17 through November 24, 14,675 consoles were sold for an average selling price of $1,186.39. However, eBay did not differentiate between the PlayStation 3's two separate SKU's, as the console was released as both a $599 60GB model and a slightly lower priced $499 20GB version. In addition, when including those who sold their pre-sale tickets for the highly sought after console between October 17 and November 24, a full 28,233 sales were recorded by eBay, with auctions ending with an average price of $1,369.90. Concerning Nintendo's newly released Wii console, which shipped in North America on November 19, eBay officials note that sellers realized significantly less profit from their online sales compared to those who sold Sony's latest console. From November 19 through November 24, 26,708 Wii consoles were moved through eBay by sellers for an average price of $412.53. Going back to October 19 and including all pre-sale activity, 29,451 Wiis were sold for an average price of $427.82. The console carries an MSRP of $249.99. Interestingly, eBay has also detailed sales of the Xbox 360, highlighting sales of 331 systems between November 12 and November 24, with an average selling price of $420.62. On the day following the recent Thanksgiving Holiday in North America, the so-called Black Friday, 26 Xbox 360 were sold for an average price of $429.94. However, prices look to have tapered off rather quickly for both the PlayStation 3 and Wii since last week. In fact, looking at auctions currently taking place on eBay, few are demanding significantly more than either console's retail price, while several auctions currently sit idle with no bids at all.