Some amusing stats doing the rounds on the internet today, courtesy of a report by market analysts, the NPD Group, entitled "Next Gen Functionality & Usage". Apparently, 40 percent of PlayStation 3 owners are not aware that the console doubles as a Blu-ray movie player, while an astonishing 50 percent don't realise it is capable of producing high resolution graphics.
But before Xbox fans raise a wry smile, it seems a mere 30 percent of 360 owners realise their machines have HD capabilities. So 70 percent don't. That's several million people. If I was working for the Sony or Microsoft marketing departments I'd be scratching my head in bemusement. Or possibly clearing my desk.
Of course, the accuracy of this data depends on the size and quality of NPD's survey group. Apparently, "The report is based on online survey responses from 6,260 members of NPD's online consumer panel. These respondents, compromised of males and females ages 6 to 44, are qualified owners of at least one next generation system (PS3, PSP, Wii, NDS, Xbox 360)."
Commenting on these results, Anita Frazier, industry analyst at the NPD Group said, "While systems' capabilities of providing owners with additional features may become more important in the future, currently the importance of these features and the awareness among consumers of these features is far from universal. To make headway in this 'next-gen' race, manufacturers still need to be primarily concerned with the quality and entertainment value of the games themselves."
'The quality and entertainment value of the games'?! Oh crap, it's the worst case scenario!
.png?w=600)
