The Xbox One seems to have won the first round of the latest console war.
A survey of early shoppers found that Microsoft's next-generation console was the system of choice this Black Friday, soundly beating Sony's PlayStation 4.
The study, from retail market research firm InfoScout, found that Xbox One buying made up 31 percent of the console buying on the frenzied shopping day. The PS4 came in tied for third place, with just 15 percent market share -- the same number as the PlayStation 3. The Xbox 360 took second place, making up 30 percent of the market.
The survey was particularly distressing for Nintendo, with the Wii U only taking 6 percent market share.
The numbers, of course, are very early and will likely change before the end of the holiday season. And console wars are never won in the first year or two. EA's Peter Moore has characterized this period as one where the industry is "just putting our shoes on to get to the start line of a long distance race."
It's also worth noting that the survey did not estimate how many consoles were purchased, nor did it say how many customers were surveyed. InfoScout also adds that Microsoft won by such a hefty margin mainly because of supply.
"[Microsoft's] success can be largely attributed to limited availability of the PS4 in addition to Walmart discounting the Xbox 360 down to $99 for Black Friday," said Jon Brelig, co-founder of InfoScout.
Of course, just because Microsoft apparently seeded retailers with a hefty number of Xbox Ones doesn't mean the systems weren't snatched up in a heartbeat. Many shoppers were disappointed by their inability to find one. And so were a pair of Indianapolis thieves.
Two suspects forced their way into a GameStop last week, demanding all of the Xbox Ones in stock -- only to learn the store was sold out.
The robbers instead left with nine PS4s, valued at $3,600.
Source:http://games.yahoo.com/blogs/plugged-in/report-xbox-one-tops-ps4-black-friday-175843194.html
