PS3 will take the lead, says Hirai

Sony Computer Entertainment boss Kaz Hirai has said he's confident PS3 will take the lead once again as this console cycle progresses.

Speaking to the BBC he said, "We've only really begun to scratch the surface with PlayStation 3 but I am confident that given the long life-cycle we have planned for the machine we are going to have a very good install base in all of the major territories.

"I am very confident that after the 10-year lifecycle we will have the install base that we are looking for and that is obviously to be in the leadership position."

So far Nintendo is winning the battle to be market leader, with 25 million Wiis shipped by April this year. According to Microsoft, 19 million Xbox 360s were shipped by the same date. Sony has sold 10.5 million PlayStation 3 consoles worldwide - 5 million of those in Europe.

Hirai went confirmed Sony will keep developing console hardware, but said it was difficult to give a timeline for the next platform. "We need to take a look at advances in technology in various areas, such as semiconductors, graphics chips, output devices, mainly TV and monitors, to see where we would like to benchmark our next generation product," he stated.

"And you can make the investments, for example, to the tune of the investments we made with previous consoles, because we look at this business as a 10-year lifecycle. We don't let our consoles go by the wayside after five years."

To watch the full 20-minute interview with Hirai, visit the BBC website.