This whole..."beating" console thing is strictly for fanboy fodder...THESE ARE CORPORATIONS...they are interested in making money...period. If you selling 300 million consoles, but lose money in the process..who gives a crap...it's all about making money money money...and how this establishes a gaming division for the next console iteration in 5-6 years from now (might be sooner for Wii and 360, but Sony has said PS3 is here longer). The problem with PS3 is that PS2 set the bar VERY high for the system to reach, and it continues to set it even higher with every passing day, so economist used these projections to make earnings forcast for PS3, which is why so many had perceived the console to be in trouble and not hitting it marks. This is no different then a sequel to a big film failing to top or meet the opening weekend of the last film...it's a matter of expectations. All these console are doing fine, and are on a trajectory to make money for the corporations, so they will all be winners by making money for the companies.
"...You can't kill ideas with a sword, and you can't sink belief structures with a broadside. You defeat them by making them change..."
- From By Schism Rent Asunder
