Sony's PlayStation brand strongest in the industry
by Conrad Quilty-Harper 
{ Feb 24th 2006 at 5:00PM }
The Sony PlayStation 3 and the PSP have the highest percentage of brand awareness amongst consumers according to
Forrester's latest report on the video games industry (which we covered earlier, twice). The mail based survey
(of 10,000 households in North America) found that 72% of North American consumers have heard of the PlayStation 3 and
a full 6% plan to buy one, despite the fact that Sony has yet to announce a final feature set, a release date or the
console's price. The Sony PSP came second on the chart of consumer gaming device awareness - 65% of consumers have heard of the PSP and around 3% plan to buy one. It's clear that Microsoft's Xbox 360 console faces an uphill battle if it wants to wrestle the mindset of North American consumers away from Sony.
Amusingly--and probably unsurprisingly--none of the consumers that had heard of the Infinium Phantom said they were planning on buying the console.
[Update: elaborated on the origins of the survey.]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jeff @ Feb 24th 2006 5:08PM
Uh, no Nintendo DS? Are they saying the Phantom has more name recognition than Nintendo's current flagship handheld, or did they just forget to ask?
A @ Feb 24th 2006 5:12PM
wait- so more people have heard of this unrevealed gameboy evolution than have heard of the 360? does anyone else suspect widespread confusion among the people surveyed?
darryl @ Feb 24th 2006 5:15PM
Sounds about right... Love 'em or hate 'em, the Playstation name is huge and will remain so unless (until?) SONY screws it up.
Josh @ Feb 24th 2006 5:17PM
wtF is a "Game Boy Evolution"? I'm a freaking Nintendo fanboy and I've never heard of this. Crappy survey if more people have heard of this "GBE" than of the Rev or especially 360. And does it look like to anyone else that the Phantom is actually way too "heard of"?
Anyway, I really don't think there is going to be another Game Boy, as I see no reason for one. Nintendo would be competing with themselves. The DS, and soon the Lite, is already selling like crazy because of it's great innovative games, and I don't see why Nintendo would release a new Game Boy that throws this whole innovation thing Nintendo is going on (and delivering on) out the window.
batman @ Feb 24th 2006 5:22PM
say have said they are making the GBE. just not when it'll come out, so when the DS dies...
oh and i don't trust this at all. email based? so the people with the time energy and will to email were the only ones surveyed?
so yeah i trust it about as far as i can throw it, and i can't throw an internet survey...
Xbox Fanboy @ Feb 24th 2006 5:23PM
and Xbox Fanboys says.. "this is a total crap of study and report, I only agree with Merril Lynch"
Die Sony Die!
theman @ Feb 24th 2006 5:24PM
This is bull.... where's the DS???
DCSimian @ Feb 24th 2006 5:30PM
I'm curious of the sample demographics...that just seems a tad fishy to me when the Xbox 360 is out and has had mass marketing behind it...and fewer people have heard of that than the PS3...
I'm curious if people were attributing the brand names from the last generation (PS2 was everywhere so maybe people assume a PS3 exists).
Sample demographics would be helpful...otherwise, it seems confounded.
Todd @ Feb 24th 2006 5:30PM
Further proof that web based surveys only represent a extremely small as well as skewed portion of the general populous. There can never be surveys that will accurately capture the data correctly. When someone says they are doing a survey on video games those that dont care about them ever want to participate. Only the more videogame savvy will be interested in taking it. As shown by the huge number of people that have said that they have heard of the Phantom and the Gameboy Evolution. Sounds like this survey was conducted in the entrance hall to E3.
Paul @ Feb 24th 2006 5:30PM
This Survey is severely messed up. More people have heard of the Game Boy Evolution, which doesn't actually exist or have any details known in the least, than the Revolution? More people have heard of the Revolution than of a console that has actually been released(360)?
mikemania @ Feb 24th 2006 5:30PM
the graph says the data is from Q3 of last year, probably meaning the DS was still known as the GB Evolution, and with both it and the Rev with litte info at that time.
Get a more up to date chart, and you'll see things change.
SilverDogg @ Feb 24th 2006 5:36PM
a couple of things show that this is a fucked up servey.
1. where is the ds?
2. how come gbe is up there?
3. no shit playstation is the biggest brand? even i could tell you that, and i wouldnt even have to do a survey to know it.
fail!
Stukodokka @ Feb 24th 2006 5:38PM
Simple statistics can prove that this study should most likely be taken with a grain of salt. I do not doubt that the PlayStation brand has the most name recognization, but for an unofficial handheld to be on there with a made up name, and have that much recognition definitely makes this study erroneous. Most likely this was just a convenience sample, as most studies are. Only a true SRS should be taken as a legitimate representation of the actual population.
DownloadingData @ Feb 24th 2006 5:40PM
Seriously, WTF is this?
Game Boy Evolution?
Some people actually intends to buy something that doesn't exsist or might not even exsist in the future.
Whuh? @ Feb 24th 2006 5:41PM
How can anyone take this poll seriously? Almost 50% want to buy a Phantom???
DCSimian @ Feb 24th 2006 5:44PM
The GBE numbers being so high might be attributed to brand recognition of the Game Boy line...similar for the high numbers on the PS3...
And yeah, there's no DS. Confounded from a research perspective.
MrTroy @ Feb 24th 2006 5:45PM
I don't understand. The above chart says Q3 2005... Well, I was one of the many planning on grabbing a PS3 that has since changed his/her mind due to the shakey nature regarding price and availability.
Since then hasn't Nintendo stated there isn't another GB coming out any time soon?
(Multple responses Accepted)
Is the other thing that makes me laugh.
Superzapper2000 recharged @ Feb 24th 2006 5:47PM
Maybe the GBE is the DS and it was a misprint ?.Sounds about right though .Wal-mart and EB in my area have Xbox360 in stock and have so for over a week though mostley Core units.Maybe the 360 buzz has died down ?.
Jeb @ Feb 24th 2006 5:55PM
They did a 10K household survey and found that almost half have heard of the Phantom? The only way I would believe that is if most of them thought the Phantom was a car or something.
A quick survey of 3 of my friends (very scientific, right?), all of whom are gamers, reveals that 0% have heard of the Phantom.
Mark @ Feb 24th 2006 5:57PM
Q3 2005, before the xbox 360 was out,
darryl @ Feb 24th 2006 5:58PM
"How can anyone take this poll seriously? Almost 50% want to buy a Phantom???"
Did you even read the text below the graph? No one said they were interested in buying a Phantom. However, 50% polled did recognize the name.
Nmaster @ Feb 24th 2006 6:01PM
An unannounced product (Game Boy Evolution isn't even the offical codename) with NO details has made more impact than the craziest hyped console ever and the first next-gen console on the market? And no mention of the current handheld king?
I'd say that poll has ZERO merit.
And I think people that say they're getting a PS3 should be required to show their financials as proof they can AFFORD it. I walk around all the time saying I'm going to buy this game and that game, but it's funny how much less enthused you are about big purchases once you take a look at your account balance...
MrPolarBare @ Feb 24th 2006 6:01PM
Wait a sec. There is an explanation!!! Notice the footnote at the bottom of the survey. This was based on 2005 third quarter. At that time, the X360 hadn't launched yet. The Sony PSP was the newest thing out. Obviously if you asked people if they've heard of the Xbox 360 now, many more would say yes. It was in the news every single day of the holiday season (because of the shortages). So there you go. That at least explains why part of this survey is screwed up.
I would venture to say that the Gameboy Evolution is supposed to be the Nintendo DS. Either way, this whole survey is just ridiculous.
Anonymous rep @ Feb 24th 2006 6:05PM
Just one thing - note that on the graph it specifically says "Multiple responses accepted". Since we don't have the survey itself - and I'm not paying $249 for it - does that mean that people could do a check yes if they've heard of PS3 AND Xbox 360 - or does that mean that people could respond anonymously via e-mail multiple times?
Could we see a bit more on the demographics? I take ANY poll that says that 72% of ALL North American Consumers have specifically heard of PS3 with a major grain of salt.
Josh @ Feb 24th 2006 6:06PM
Ok so how much bs is this report. How do thinking that havent been released get higher ratings then the things that have been released and have been advertised????? I think they just used a Sony registration database for numbers to call.
Clay @ Feb 24th 2006 6:08PM
I don't believe that study.
The PSP? Yeah right! Kids my age don't even know about the Revolution, let about some new game boy -- which I've never even heard of until now.
You ask people about game consoles and they'll say Playstation and Xbox. If they play games, they'll know about the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.
Conrad Quilty-Harper @ Feb 24th 2006 6:12PM
Just a couple of points kids:
1) This was a mail based survey of 10,000 households in North America.
2) It was carried out in Q3 2005 which explains the lack of DS, Xbox 360 and the wierd GBE brand.
Freakhead @ Feb 24th 2006 6:18PM
I think the reports bs because they are showing the Phantom way the f up there.
If I went to Wal-mart right now and asked 30 people I bet 0 would know what the Phantom is. But all of 'em will know the Playstation, Xbox and GAmeboy.
Stukodokka @ Feb 24th 2006 6:32PM
Ah, it was a mail based survey, therefore making it a convenience sample. So the data contained therein is not relevant to the actual population. Thanks for clearing that up.
jimmy93211 @ Feb 24th 2006 6:33PM
I am not a fanboy or anything like that but I do not believe that more people have heard of the playstation then the game boy the game boy has been out for much longer!
tristan @ Feb 24th 2006 6:55PM
I think the reason why the Playstation is so high up, is that it is a Sony product. Sony is very,very widely known. And the PSP isn't just a game system that the casual gamer would know about, but it is also a portable media center. I mean, everytime I see a commercial about some movie coming to DVD, it's coming to DVD, and UMD. And as far as the DS goes, who knows why it's not there. It'll probably be around the Gameboy level. Know one I know has a DS...
Nmaster @ Feb 24th 2006 7:18PM
"It was carried out in Q3 2005 which explains the lack of DS, Xbox 360 and the wierd GBE brand."
That just makes the situation all the more confusing, that doesn't explain anything...
During Q3 2005, the Xbox 360 was at the top of it's hype, and, depending on the precise timing, so was the Revolution (was the controller already revealed or not?).
The lack of DS makes NO sense whatsoever, since it had been released for almost a year in Q3 '05, just a bit longer than the PSP, which got listed.
As for the Game Boy Evolution, I would agree that Q3 2005 was a time where rumors were flying and people were using that term a lot, but it still proves that the company that made the survey had no idea what they were talking about. "Evolution" is a fan-given codename, and nothing more. There literally are NO, ZERO, ZIP details on this thing. And the fact it scored so high proves that people were confused, because I guarantee half of those people hadn't heard of it, since it's really only talked about in gaming circles (although EVERYONE has heard of the "Game Boy" brand).
This whole survey is BS on a stick, there's just way to many inconsistencies for it to have any merit. It wouldn've been interesting had they actually done it right...
Andrew @ Feb 24th 2006 7:18PM
You can never believe or trust these worthless anaylst groups. Their all a bunch of pompesus jerktards.
and Xbox Fanboys says..
and Nintendo fanboys says... death to all you sony and Microsoft traitors, viva Revolution.
AC @ Feb 24th 2006 7:21PM
Why is this a suprise to anyone?
They outsold XBox 5 to 1 worldwide with noticeably inferior hardware.
And now the hardware is even (perhaps ps3 advantage), how many units will they sell? Not to mention that XBox1 had an amazing launch title in Halo1, and here we have what? Kameo? PC games? More racing games?
Console means 'Playstation' for the average guy (not the internet game-blog people) and that's who Microsoft has to win over. People aren't going to go out any buy expensive hardware so they can pay to download flash games. It's a great feature for people who own it (especially when there's been a dry spell of good games), but that's not a system seller.
JJ Tusick @ Feb 24th 2006 8:22PM
Wow, this is probably the most worthless piece of garbage you guys have ever posted on joystiq. I thought it was valid at first, til i noticed no nintendo ds. Then, i noticed a gameboy evolution, wtf is that? Then, i thought it was fake or a joke or something, then i went to the permalink and i was like oh my God
Jo @ Feb 24th 2006 9:05PM
Ahhh!!!
More bad news on the 360 front!
Quick deny it! 10,000 people is too small a sampling!! no DS! aahhh!! bad timing!! Deny it!!!
Kyle @ Feb 24th 2006 9:18PM
Gotta be fake. How could more people have heard of something that DOESN'T EVEN EXIST (Game Boy Evolution) than the Xbox 360, which has mass marketing out the wazoo?
OxyMormoN @ Feb 24th 2006 9:56PM
Here's why i think its skewed with GBE and so on.
The survey was of people 'on the street' right? Now most people have at least heard of sony, nintendo, playstation, game boy. They don't hear game boy evolution, or don't care. It's a game boy, or a playstation, like their kid has.
Hell, i know people who call the psp a 'game boy' and the xbox A 'playstation', emphasis on 'a' in both cases.
Still can't figure out the phantom numbers though...
Jamesology @ Feb 25th 2006 2:18AM
LMAO its funny how DS fangirls cry and bitch just b/c Playstation is better known. Obviuosly Playstation is heard of more since they have a bigger third party support. Most of the commercials you see with promos give out Playstations. Look at Walmart! Always supporting Playstation. And I know all of you(north americans) have heard of Walmart.
burninhell @ Feb 25th 2006 3:26AM
what a waste of time these surveys are...after all the hype over the 360 last fall you really think that more people have heard of the Revolution? They are just average goofballs reacting to the word 'Nintendo'...and no, I'm not fanboying, I'm personally just as likely o buy a Rev as a 360, I just know that these people are ignorant to the point that their responses are almost meaningless. This also explains the Game Boy Evolution response...they just heard Game Boy, and said yeah.
random_hugs_all_around @ Feb 25th 2006 3:38AM
To 4.
Nintendo is already competing with itself.
Conrad Quilty-Harper @ Feb 25th 2006 4:25AM
We've got in touch with Forrester about the Game Boy Evolution - we'll update this article if we hear anything.
Other than that I don't see anything wrong with this survey. The PlayStation is the strongest brand, it's not really surprising considering they sold 100 million PS2s vs 35 million odd Xboxes.
DCSimian @ Feb 25th 2006 9:29AM
Well, in that case, I think they should reword the graph and talk about brand name recognition rather than platforms. It's important to know the demographics because if this is supposed to be generalizable to the rest of the country, then one would hope they surveyed people in at least each region. It just raises a lot of questions when supposedly, over 40% have heard of the Phantom. If this is meant to be generalizable (all good research should when talking about trends), then they're saying that 40% of the population they sampled from have heard of it...which i highly doubt.
The way the above chart is layed out seems like they're talking about specific consoles, rather than brand names. Regardless, it's not good research and should be taken with a few grains of salt...
David @ Feb 25th 2006 8:03PM
It's obvious how people voted:
1) Playstation existed for over 12 years. It doesn't matter what number is behind Playstation, it's still a playstation, while Nintendo changes console name all the time.
2) Not as much people "recognize" xbox or xbox 360 or Revolution because a lot of them who voted "not recognizing" it are Sony fanboys.
3) Obviously, add a SONY in front of any products, most people will just say they know it.
COME ON, PSP is more reknown than GAMEBOY??? That is plain crazy. Gameboy is the most popular handheld system EVER.
They surveyed some of the most biased-toward-Sony consumers out there!