6% off is not that bad...

Specially when most of that undertracking comes from places where we have no official tracking record.

I think we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one.

Unlike you I don't think there is an exact number of PS4's out there. You only need to look at the variation in Media Create and Famitsu data to see that. Now if we can't get the numbers exact in a highly urbanised and regulated market like Japan, what chance of accurate data is there coming out of India or South America?

As I said, I don't care if it's over 10 million. I just think VGChartz numbers deserve credit for being reasonably accurate and it's important to remember the Sony estimates will be on the higher end of possible sales. It was a sales pitch remember.

Well for a discussion about disecting verbage, the impression from ioi and many posters here is insinuating what you have bolded.

Sony's words not mine.  I gonna assume your are being sarcastic seeing as 6k(6,000) in one day is easily attainable. Unless you of course you meant 600k, which is obviously not going to happen. 

The bolded is the important bit. It's not quantifiable. Once again, I'm not saying they're intentionally lying to the public. I'm just saying it's important to consider that Sony themselves can only estimate sold through figures and it's natural that they would advertise the higher numbers to the public. That's not lying. It's smart marketing (and if you really do work in the industry yourself, you'd be fully aware it's done all the time.)

So long as they've shipped over 10 million nothing they said is quantifiably wrong.

And let me also say why i feel many users feel these threads and responses are disingenuous is because this site tries to capitalize on weekly sales and this culture we have of instantaneous gratification. Which is fine. But they (VGC) can't have their cake and eat it too when we get more accurate figures and then hide behind the same thing they are exploiting, which is weekly estimates.

Either own up, put official responses out when this happens that are clear and visible on the main page or just default to monthly "tracking". Granted a 6%-7% difference for what this site offers is really really good and many people don't understand that in today's have-now/console wars mentality. the problem is I feel there is too much bravado in terms of acknowledging what this site ACTUALLY is and what it tries to be. The site treads a fine line on trying to be a big time player so it can't say what it needs to say:

"We are within 7% of what Sony has just released which we are very proud of, We will work tirelessly to adjust our tracking algorithms to better reflect trends in consumer habits related to the video game market and will update everyone accordingly"

Instead we get a defensive response with subtle digs at Sony's figures. This site just needs better PR. Simple as that.

I never understood this kind of approach to criticism. ''Yeah, sure, my work may not be good, but can YOU do it better?'' Its such a flipping strawmen argument, I am surprised anyone can take it seriously. 

This isnt about the users, they are not in charge of this website, they are not the ones beig paid by ad revenue nor is it their full time job to keep it accurate and running. It is the admin's job however, and there is nothing wrong to critisice and call him out on it when he is not doing a very good joob. 

So how we have come to a point where we are assuimng that Sony themselves might be wrong or are straight up LYING on the sales of their own product but VGC is probably right? Man, some people just cant stand seeing the red line being the longest on the front page

1) Announcing "over 10 million" makes the announcement itself very clear and quanitfiable. As there is no other way to interpret "over 10 million" outisde of the figure being above 10 million. The whole point to being misleading in advertising is to be as ambigious and open to (mis)interpretation as you can.

2) No, it's stupid marketing. From what I'm reading you have little practical knowledge of how marketing comminication works. You're basically saying that they'd risk loing their credibility and the goodwill from gamers that they managed to wrest from their competitors for the sole purpose of announcing a milestone that would have minimal (if any) effect on their sales. The risk/reward is retardedly bad. If anything, granted that they may be estimating their numbers (with a much better margin of error than VGC could ever attain due to access to internal numbers as well as what is publicly available), chances are they would estimate rounding down to avoid being wrong.

3) Except for the fact that they announced "sold thru to consumers" and "not shipped"...!

They don't need to estimate. They get the numbers directly. It's truly amazing how little people know here about retail.