Microsoft Corp. sold about 123,000 Xbox video-game consoles in the first three days of sales in Japan, about half the company's initial shipment, an analyst said. Buyers of the Xbox, which debuted in Japan Friday, also purchased an average 1.58 game-software titles for the console, said Jay Defibaugh, an analyst with Credit Suisse First Boston Securities (Japan) Ltd., citing figures released by Famitsu, a Japanese game industry magazine. Microsoft is initially targeting hardcore game fans in Japan such as those who waited in line for hours before stores opened Friday. The real challenge for the company is to attract other consumers on the home turf of rival consoles, Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 2 and Nintendo Co.'s GameCube.
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