Sony: Playstation 4 sales top 5.3 million

The PlayStation 4.

Sony says it has sold more than 5.3 million PlayStation 4 consoles since the new-generation gaming system debuted in November.

Microsoft has not released sales figures for its competing Xbox One for the equivalent period.

But data from industry analyst NPD Group shows Sony sold twice the consoles of Microsoft in the US in January, Sony claims.

In a lucrative month, Americans spent US$241 million (NZ$290m) on videogame hardware, predominantly consoles.

In January 2013, that figure was US$205 million (NZ$247).

Neither Sony nor Microsoft have released official Australian sales data, but NPD Group research released last week put the PlayStation 4 in the lead overall.

National stock shortages have complicated local sales comparisons.

PS4 and Xbox One, also released in November, are fighting to be at the heart of digital home entertainment as people increasingly turn to smartphones and tablets for gaming.

- AFP