New hardware boosts Oz game sales

New hardware releases helped the Australian games industry reach a sales high of AUD $925 million (EUR 562m) in 2006.

Total game sales were up 7 per cent in 2006, with hardware rising 18 per cent and accounting for AUS $329 million in sales (EUR 200m), according to data released by GfK Australia.

Software sales amounted to AUD $596 million, a rise of just one per cent, but actual software units sold dropped to 12.5 million, compared to 12.6 million in the previous year.

Between October and December 2006, the DS sold 151,922 units, while the PlayStation 2 managed 122,639 consoles sold. The PSP sold 55,850 units in the same period.

Since the Nintendo Wii launched December 7, it has sold a total of 51,744 units, while the Xbox 360 has sold 45,036 units in the final three months of the year.

The Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia believes that the industry will continue to grow this year.

"2007 will be a considerable year for hardware sales and the Australian interactive games industry will comfortably exceed the AUS $1 billion mark," offered Chris Hanlon, CEO of the IEAA.