New Microsoft console in 2010, says analyst

By Patrick Garratt

Pacific Crest Securities analyst Evan Wilson has pointed to 2010 being a major year in the games trade’s cycle, with his company expecting a new console from Microsoft and the end of PSP and DS.

“We believe that peak industry sales will occur in 2010, given that Microsoft will likely introduce its next console that year and Nintendo will likely launch before then,” he said. “Further, 2010 is also likely to coincide with the end of the Nintendo DS and Sony PSP cycles.”

Wilson’s comments came in a week where EA looked as far ahead as 2011 for a revenue target. He made no mention of a PlayStation 3 cycle, which is reasonably assumed to be further reaching than Xbox 360’s and far distant to Wii’s.