PS3, Wii Duke It Out at the Cash Register

Nov. 18, 2006 — -- Nintendo strikes this weekend with its new Wii gaming console and Sony's PlayStation 3 has already sparked rowdy crowds, a buying frenzy and even violence -- and the holiday season has barely begun.

In the gaming world, it's all out war.

Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo are fighting for a piece of the $20 billion video gaming industry. Following the PlayStation 3 launch this past week, Nintendo will launch its Wii gaming console Sunday evening.

Nintendo's strategy is to release the lowest-priced console on the market and to focus on the game content, not the graphics.

"The whole strategy behind the Wii is to bring gaming back to the masses," said Reginald Fils-Amie, president and COO of Nintendo North America.

Sony is making a different play. Its $600 PlayStation 3 offers graphics better than anything on the market. Sony says it had 400,000 consoles available at launch, but for diehard fans, that may not be enough.

"It can't be a marketing ploy because Sony has been losing money hand over fist," said Adam Sessler, host of G4's Xplay. "They're trying to get out as many as they can."

Sony is even hiring private jets to bring in 100,000 new devices each week for the holiday season.

Gaming insiders said Sony is playing catch-up. The company is losing about $300 per console because of all the extra technology they have added to stay competitive.

"It's a way to create this hub inside your house so that there's one central spot where you can be buying Sony products," Sessler said.

The bigger battle may be between Sony and Microsoft, the maker of the Xbox 360. The fight is over the future of entertainment, and the battlefield is your living room.