Kaz Hirai Sets 150m Lifetime Target For PS3

Sony Computer Entertainment president and CEO Kazuo Hirai has given a sales target of 150 million for the PlayStation 3, over its entire lifetime, in further bullish talk over the console’s future. Hirai recently indicated that he expected PlayStation 3 operations to become profitable by the end of Sony’s next financial year in March 2009. His new sales target for the format was made in an interview with British newspaper the Financial Times. As Hirai indicated, the PSone has sold 102 million units worldwide since its launch in 1994 and the PlayStation 2 remains the most successful video games console ever with a worldwide total of 140 million units after nine years. After twenty months on sale current PlayStation 3 sales are put at under 15 million units. Sales over the previous financial year were 12.85 million, with 10 million units expected to be sold in the current financial year. "It's not fun for me replicating the PS2 numbers. I've seen that movie already," said Hirai. "I want to try to see if we can exceed the PS2 numbers after nine years, otherwise why are we in this business?" Commenting in the same article Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter commented: "It's highly likely that when the PS3 gets below $200, it will sell as well as the PS2."