The New York Times has written a new article outlining the sales success of the Wii and PS3 in Japan. So far, Sony have only managed to sell 534,336 units between their debut on November 11 and January 7, according to the Enterbrain group.

The Wii sold 1.14 Million units by the same date, despite the fact that it went on sale three weeks after the PS3. Microsoft's Xbox 360 has only managed to sell 311,053 units since launching in Japan in December 2005.

According to the NY Times article:

"Slow sales could spell trouble for Sony, which badly needs PlayStation 3 to be a hit to overcome years of lackluster profits and polish its brand image. Sony’s Welsh-born chief executive, Sir Howard Stringer, has repeatedly said the company’s future depends on turning out “champion products,” and analysts say PlayStation 3 is the only potential mega-hit now visible in the company’s pipelines.

Analysts said the Japanese sales figures could offer an advanced look at how PlayStation 3 and Wii could fare in the United States, though they cautioned there were differences between the countries. They said consumers in the United States, for instance, may be more willing to embrace PlayStation 3 because its sharper graphics could be better suited to the larger television screens in America’s more spacious homes.

Analysts also said they had expected a slow start by PlayStation 3 in all major global markets, as production delays limited the number of machines available. But they and retailers said they have been surprised by just how tepid Japanese demand has been so far. They said the main reason consumers were shunning PlayStation 3 was its high price, twice as expensive as Wii.

“We are getting our first real peek into the marketplace,” said Masayuki Otani, a video games industry analyst at Maruwa Securities in Tokyo, “and it’s obvious already that Wii is bolting ahead."