PS4 demand outweighs Xbox One in the US, poll suggests

Sony's PlayStation 4 has generated more interest among consumers than Microsoft's next-gen rival Xbox One, according to a new Reuters poll.

More than a quarter of respondents (26%) said they had an interest in buying a PS4 during the holiday season, while 15 per cent chose Xbox One instead. The Reuters/Ipsos survey, conducted amongst North America residents, put the question of console ownership to 1,297 people, making it a relatively small measure of consumer interest.

But the difference in popularity between consoles was made clear, especially among younger respondents. Of those under the age of 40 (which amounted to 408 people), 41 per cent chose PS4 while 27 per cent went for Xbox One.

Only 3 percent said they play games on the Wii U.

The PlayStation and Xbox teams have been through markedly different years, distinguished by key differences in hardware approach, public relations and consumer feedback.

While Microsoft outraged online games communities for introducing several contentious policies - such as pre-owned fees and online authentication - Sony won a standing ovation at E3 in June for pledging to do the opposite.

Microsoft eventually reversed its policies, and Don Mattrick, the head of the Xbox executive team, quit Microsoft for a job at Zynga.

Now weeks away from launch, both the PS4 and Xbox One provide similar services and technologies, although Sony has the advantage of pricing its PlayStation 4 about $100 and £80 less than Microsoft's rival.

But Fergal Gara, the UK managing director of PlayStation UK, talked down the RRP advantage.

"Price isn't everything. It's an advantage, but it can move over time," he said in a recent interview with CVG.

"Value to the consumer is everything, which is price and quality of content for that price. We feel in very good shape on that front."

Elsewhere in the survey, about a quarter of respondents who owned games devices said they were going to buy GTAV, while 22 per cent declared an interest in Activision's Call of Duty: Ghosts.

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag generated interest among 19 per cent of the audience, while Madden NFL 25 and Battlefield 4 were the fourth and fifth choices.