TIME Says Only 200,000 PS3 Owners in the United States
Thursday, 11 Dec 2008 11:19
TIME Magazine
Tell me I lack reading comprehension, but I'm sure I just read the absurdest thing on TIME's website.
In a preview of PlayStation Home, which
releases to everyone today, the following comment is made:
"Starting today, owners of the pricey PlayStation 3 — there are nearly 17 million of them worldwide,
a scant 200,000 of whom live in the U.S. — can download the software for free via Sony's PlayStation Network"
Did I read that right? Only 200,000 PlayStation 3's in the U.S.? Last I looked, there were almost 7 million PlayStation 3 owners in the U.S. Where exactly does TIME think the other 16.8 million PS3 owners live? Mongolia?
This is also the website that included Star Wars: The Force Unleashed in its
top ten games of the year, whilst failing to list Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, which won over 60% of your votes in the
PlayStation 3 Gamezine Awards. let alone including Speed Racer in their
top ten films, but not The Dark Knight. Cringe.
This very same PlayStation Home preview ends with the following words:
"PlayStation 3 division lost nearly $3.8 billion over the past few years. The PlayStation 3 costs $400 and is getting thumped by Microsoft's XBOX, which is twice as popular."
Twice as popular? What methodology was used to discover the Xbox 360 was twice as popular? It's not sales, as the console hasn't sold 34 million units. Perhaps it's recent US sales? Or maybe the Xbox 360 has sold 400,000 units in the US, in comparison to the PS3's 200,000? Or perhaps "XBOX" is in reference to the original Xbox...
Who knows, but
TIME needs to get a grip.
[UPDATE] - I'm pleased to announce that TIME has edited their article. The sentence now reads:
"Starting today, owners of the pricey PlayStation 3 — there are nearly 17 million of them worldwide, a scant 200,000, for the month of October, of whom live in the U.S. — can download the software for free via Sony's PlayStation Network."
Let me say that again, in case you missed it;
"a scant 200,000, for the month of October, of whom live in the U.S."
That might happen to be the one of the worst constructed sentences I've ever read, in my entire life, in the United Kingdom, which is where I live, sometimes, unless it's holiday time.
Does the edit mean that 200,000 PlayStation owners were living in the U.S. in the month of October? TIME what has happened to you?
[UPDATE 2] - TIME has once again edited their preview of PlayStation Home;
"Starting today, owners of the pricey PlayStation 3 — there are nearly 17 million of them worldwide — can download the software for free via Sony's PlayStation Network."
Better, much better.
Who said pointing out editorial mistakes was pointless?
Patrick Steen
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