Japanese Analysts Doubtful of Xbox 360 Success

With mere days until the Xbox 360 launches in Japan, independent economic news firm AFX News Limited has reported that Japanese analysts are casting doubts on the console's economic success in that region. "We had previously thought that Xbox 360 could gain a major share of the Japanese market by taking some market share from front-runner Sony Computer," the report quotes Mitsubishi UFJ Securities analyst Hirotoshi Murakami as saying. "But we now think that such a prospect may not be realized, given the limited attractiveness of its titles and its lukewarm functions." "No one -- consumers or software makers -- has been talking about the Xbox 360 lately, although we only have a couple of days before the release," said Tokai Tokyo Research Center analyst Nobuyuki Kawamata. "Given also the fact that basic functions of Xbox 360 are inferior to Sony's next-generation machine, and that there are not many newly-developed titles ready for the Japanese launch, Xbox 360 is not likely to become a must-buy console here in Japan," he added. The Xbox 360 will be released this Saturday, December 10 in Japan, along with six initial game titles. Microsoft has set a target selling point of 1 million consoles in that region by summer 2006.