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Walkman outsells iPod in Japan for first time
TOKYO
TOKYO, Sep 2 - In a rare victory for Sony over arch-rival Apple, the Walkman portable music player outsold the iPod in Japan in monthly sales for the first time in August, a survey showed Thursday.
Sony's share of the Japanese market for portable music players stood at 47.8 percent last month, ahead of Apple which had 44.0 percent, according to the Tokyo-based marketing research company BCN Inc.
Sony has faced stiff competition in recent years from the huge popularity of the iPod and other products that rival its own, such as Nintendo's Wii video game system that has challenged Sony's PlayStation console.
"This is the first time that the Walkman outsold the iPod in monthly sales" since the 2001 launch of Apple's music player in Japan, BCN analyst Eiji Mori said.
The result demonstrated "consumers' reluctance to buy iPods ahead of the launch of a new iPod range in the United States," he said.
TOKYO, Sep 2 - Japanese mini-vehicle maker and Toyota subsidiary Daihatsu Motor Co. said it would recall more than 600,000 cars at home and in Europe due to indicator light covers that fade over time.
ATHENS, Sep 1 - Greek smokers were under pressure to curb their habit Wednesday as a new law banning smoking in public places went into effect in Europe's most nicotine-addicted nation.
LONDON, Sep 1 - British oil giant BP has agreed to sell some of its Malaysian assets to local state energy firm Petronas for 363 million dollars the group announced on Wednesday.
BEIJING, Sept 1 - Microsoft has launched an advertising platform in China in an attempt to grab market share from rival Google, which has been wrangling with Beijing over censorship.
