Initial PS3 Slim Sales Smashing Wii and Xbox 360 in UK

Initial sales figures for Sony's PS3 Slim show nearly a 1000% increase in its first week in the UK, outselling the Wii and Xbox 360 three-to-one.

Has Sony finally found a sweet spot for its PlayStation 3 gaming console? Maybe so—at least in Europe—according to new sales figures from Chart-Track. According to the market analysis firm, the newly introduced-and-repriced PS3 Slim has seen a massive jump in sales in its first week of availability in the United Kingdom, seeing almost a 1000 percent jump in sales over the previous week. The numbers have the PS3 Slim outselling the Wii and the Xbox 360 by three-to-one during the week…and may indicate Sony is on to something with its new PS3 price tag.

Industry watchers expect the number represent a sales surge, rather than a new sustainable pace for the PS3 Slim. Consumers may have put off purchasing a PS3 system in anticipation of a price drop, an effect that would have dampened PS3 sales in previous weeks. Similarly, while PS3 sales have lagged substantially behind the Xbox 360 in North America, the unit has enjoyed more competitive sales in Europe against both the Wii and Xbox 360.

Nonetheless, Sony may have found a formula that makes the PS3 Slim a sales contender alongside the Xbox 360…and with global sales of the Wii finally starting to fall off, the PS3 might be Sony’s first major move to reclaiming dominance of the video game console industry—although it’s worth nothing the PlayStation 2 is still on sale and still moving a good number of units.

The first glimpse of the PS3 Slim’s sales in the United States will likely come with NPD Group’s video game sales figures, expected mid-month.