NPD are concerned about VG Chartz

David Riley, NPD senior manager is sending belittling emails to VG Chartz.

"K.O.,

I'm looking at prelims for the month and am happy to see that you're way off the NPD estimations for the month. I would expect you not to change your "article" (because god knows I'm keeping a copy of your current post), and to provide your readers with the NPD's actuals vs. your current estimations.

Keep on working on that fantastic formula of yours. At this rate, I think you'll
get there sometime before 2030."

More after the jump.

[Lord Anubis]

Lol, I don't even know why people read VG Charts. Its not reliable and that is the reason it has been banned from more than one forum and site. (GAF)

[the_round_peg]

Their data are really close most of the time.

Maybe NPD is just upset because their data are simply too close too often. If people can get sales data from VGChartz for free, why would anyone want to pay to get similar data from NPD??

[dknight]

And NPD is reliable? They don't even account for 40% of retail which is WalMart.

But that doesn't excuse the emails.

[DrunKao]

They're as accurate as you're gonna get.

[ngg12345]

NPD are complete asses. Bullying another site and viewing them as competition.

[ITR]

NPD must view VGC as competition to sling so much mud over this.

[Torch]

I used to be a report analyst for NPD Canada (formerly International Surveys Limited (ISL), and rest assured that VG Charts isn't deemed competition.

Rather, it was AC Nielsen in particular whom they kept at very close watch.

At least at the time, NPD generated revenue by collecting quantitative sales information via various means (POS terminals, ongoing consumer-based purchase surveys). The collected data would then be compiled, interpreted, and sold to their clients (i.e., Kraft, Proctor & Gamble, Nestle, etc.).

I don't think that a relatively minuscule website like VG Charts is any cause for them to even flinch. I have a hard time believing that management would waste their time sending off such pointless emails...but you never know, I guess.

I've gotta say though, that NPD is, to date, by far the absolutely greatest working environment I've ever experienced. Semi-casual dress, flexible hours, flex-time, thirty-five hour workweeks(!), and a fantastic, friendly bunch of people to work with.

It was the monotonous, number-crunching work itself, those never-ending 2,000 page reports, and relatively low pay, which became the Achilles Heel and ultimately drove me away.

[Nav1]

NPD is a douche bag for sending out stupid emails.

[sadiq]

thats why vgchartz is in beta ?

[bluebrad1974]

When the people that you get your numbers from sends you an e-mail and says your numbers are incorrect, then your numbers are incorrect.

[pilotpistolpete]

What a douche bag. Its like home depot b*tching at a local hardware store that they don't know how to run a business.

[BIadestarX]

oh wow! hahaha! that's some serious hate letter. As you can all see... hostility is not found only between xbox fans and sony fans.

[Silver360]

NPD doesn't want to be used to validate VGCharts data so they are trying to get them to stop. State your numbers VGCharts , but don't use NPD as a reference. That's what I read in this email.

[OldSchoolGamer]

Wow what a shocker! Must be the reason no one claims they are news. Simply Fanboys who try and guess! I can do that, can I be a website?! Children this is why they will never be news, as they are as reliable as wikipedia. Stop ever posting their crap please.

[kornbeaner]

P-P-V rumble in the cage. 3 rounds of 20 mins or to the death (whichever comes first.)

Come on, Rage in the Cage!!!!!!!

That would be sweet!!!!!!!

[Eternal E 808]

saying it all along...i just want to say.......i told you so.

[tplarkin7]

VGChartz extrapolates old NPD data. They don't survey retail or customers. NPD does the real footwork.

[kingofps3]

NDP charges 100k? From whom? For what sort of data? Anybody know? Then why do we get the data for free? Is there much more that we dont see?

[Odion]

websites and companies have to sign up a membership to be given the NPD raw data

[bootsielon]

Vgcharts is not vgchartz. Vgcharts sucks. Vgchartz is actually pretty good. Don't be a moron and do your research well. Anyway, NPD is full of sh1t apparently. If they were such good analysts, they wouldn't be harassing vg chartz. NPD is afraid of going bankrupt.

[DJ]

is a reliable way of predicting when each console manufacturer is right about to state something significant (i.e. when Nintendo announced 4 million sold, and VG posted the 4 million mark a few days before Nintendo's announcement) means that they have to be doing something right. Nexgenwars.com on the other hand is a fake site run with automatic numbers; in fact, that site was caught with its pants down when its Xbox 360 sales figures were found out to be 2 million units overboard. Nexgenwars has since retracked that 'data'. =P

I agree with the above posts. NPD is just intimidated, and thus felt like mud slinging.

[JasonPC360PS3Wii]

Good maybe this is the first step in brining VGcharts down and bury them next to all the other fan made, made up and just downright BS video games sales sites.

[the_round_peg]

Their data are fairly close most of the time.

Maybe NPD is just upset because their data are simply too close too often. If people can get sales data from VGChartz for free, why would anyone want to pay to get similar data from NPD??