Sony reached 1.3 million units at the end of 2000........

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. expects to dramatically increase global shipments of PlayStation 2 units to retail stores by end of March, with projected sales of 11 million, according to The Nihon Keizai Shimbun Monday edition.
To date, SCEI has shipped to retail 4 million units into Japan\'s retail chains, while SCEA (Sony Computer Entertainment America) has continued to stand by its story that it has shipped 100,000 units each week since the North American launch (October 26, 2000), topping out at 1.3 million by year\'s end 2000.

The boost in shipments would greatly benefit the North American market, which has essentially been blanked by SCEA, due to chip shortages and production problems in Japan. SCEA could have skunked the competition this past Christmas if more systems were available, but despite having shipped more units than any previous manufacturer at launch in Japan and North America, SCEA could not live up to its own marketing hype and many gamers were either disappointed by the software, or disappointed because they couldn\'t find a system to buy.

SCEI, however, sees its situation changing drastically in both Japan and North America in 2001. In Japan, Square will bring Final Fantasy X to PlayStation 2, followed by popular games from Koei, Namco, Capcom, and Konami, which also are expected to deliver blockbuster games to Japan. In the US, SCEA appears to be ramping up for a massive boost in March. First, the company expects to ship in millions of PS2 units, making the system more readily available. With more hardware available, new next-generation looking and playing games appear to be right on time. A platoon of great games, including Polyphony\'s Gran Turismo 3 A-Spec, Konami\'s Z.O.E., Ring of Red, and Shadow of Destiny, and Square\'s The Bouncer, all will appear in March.

PS2.ign.com.......