why should microsoft cut prices? microsoft has almost no japan base, sony just cut thier price another $100 dollars and still could not outsell the 360. im sorry that is just sad. plus look at the software sales. that tells you if a console is in trouble or not. microsoft just broke the all time entertainment sales record. halo 3 sold $170 million in just 24 hours. i dont believe microsoft is losing anything.

While that may be true, isn't it also setting the bar ridiculously low? Sony is a huge corporation, with billions invested in the PS3. They started this generation with tremendous third-party support, and the widespread assumption that their system would dominate once again. I can't imagine things getting bad enough for the PS3 to disappear from the market entirely; too many people have too much money invested in the platform. Even the Dreamcast's low sales weren't enough to see it pulled from store shelves; the Dreamcast became unviable due to Sega's internal financial problems, not the sales numbers. The PS3 would have had to fail as hard as, say, the N-Gage to stop being stocked at retail, which was essentially impossible.

As far as the other issue under discussion, comparing PS3 2007 sales to 360 2006 sales, this is a very silly metric to use. Comparing "launch aligned" sales with no supporting context leads to some strange results. For instance, did you know that Gamecube 2001 launch numbers were stronger than PS2 2000 ones in America? It's true! I even remember Nintendo fans claiming that Gamecube was going to win, because its sales were outpacing PS2 ones when the launches were compared. Of course we all know how that turned out; the PS2 had a lead of almost 7m units just in America before the Gamecube even got off the ground, turning the "competition" into a laugher. Without the context to explain the situation (e.g. massive PS2 supply shortages early on, huge PS2 install base advantage), you end up with some truly misleading and meaningless statistics.

In short: the PS3 has to beat the 360 right now, not compared to a year ago. Fortunately, it's doing a good job of that outside of America.

The 360 also had an entire year with no "next gen" competition to run with.

Despite competition from both the 360 with an already huge install base and the freakish popularity of the Wii, the PS3's first year is comparable if not better than the 360's.

The PS3 will beat the 360.

Thanksgiving is always the last Thursday of November. Last year that fell on the 30th of Nov, so yes, last year, black friday was in December. It almost never happens. Almost.

I could swear I saw you or someone post this exact same text in another thread.  I mean EXACT.

You are complaining about everyone saying something over and over, and you do the same?

Keep in mind that the 360 is still cheaper than most ps3 models.

Thanksgiving is the fourth thursday of November.  If Thanksgiving were on the last thursday, we wouldn't have already celebrated it ;).  Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving, therefore Black Friday can never be in December.  Unless my maths are somehow wrong.

 Actually, it is the second to last thursday of every year. It is impossible for Black Friday to be in december. Regardless, the way NPD calculates months would probably compensate for that if it could happen.

There is absolutely no evidence that points to that being true.  Even if the PS3 doubles the previous 360 year it will mean nothing if the 360 is selling better, or as well as the PS3 is currently. If the PS3 starts outselling the 360 by a significan amount world wide you could make a case for 

it beating the 360.

 Did you actually just say that? Uncharted has had very little advertising on TV whereas I couldn't watch five minutes of TV last November without seeing the "Mad World" Gears of War commercial three times.

I asked Shams to write something up on first year vs first year vs first year even though the PS3 hasn't had a full year in the UK yet he should be able to pull together the last few months in the UK and compare whats there for UK numbers and when it turns 1 in the UK (and a few minor countries) he will be able to update it.