Leaked Mattrick memo apparently cites NPD data on third party revenues indicator

A leaked internal Microsoft memo apparently sent by head of the corporation's Games division, Don Mattrick, to his employees, states that the Xbox 360 is on course to become the next-generation console winner.

The majority of the text of the document detailed most of what was said by Bill Gates and Robbie Bach in the Consumer Electronics Show keynote, including the latest statistics for Xbox 360 sales and Xbox Live membership.

But additionally the memo, originally leaked to and reprinted by Dean Takahashi, also implies that the Xbox 360 is generating more third party revenue that its rivals.

"History has shown that the eventual winner of each console generation was the console that generated the most third party revenue, and according to the most recent NPD data, Xbox 360 generated more third party revenue in 2007 than Nintendo and Sony combined," it stated.

Figures for hardware sales over the Christmas period haven't been released by all three console manufacturers as yet, although Sony has announced its numbers - and its previous generation winner, the PlayStation 2, outsold its newer flagship model.

Meanwhile analysts had been predicting that Nintendo would come out on top despite acknowledging a shortage of hardware because of demand from a wider casual audience.