Sept. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Electronic Arts Inc. said video- game industry sales for North America fell in August, and “Madden NFL 10” sales “are down with that trend.”

“It is discouraging that one of our highest-rated and best-marketed ‘Madden’ titles in years is facing strong headwinds,” Chief Executive Officer John Riccitiello told employees in an e-mail released today. Industry trends “present a challenge,” he said.

Price cuts last month on Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox consoles have spurred demand for hardware, a sign that increasing software sales may follow, Riccitiello said. Researcher NPD Group Inc. releases August industry data for North America later today.

Electronic Arts fell 48 cents, or 2.6 percent, to $18.05 at 4 p.m. New York Time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares have gained 13 percent this year.

Todd Mitchell, an analyst with Kaufman Bros. LP in New York, today reduced his estimates for August video-game software sales. He expects Port Washington, New York-based NPD to report August retail software sales of $550 million, little changed from a year earlier, according to a research note today. He previously expected a 7 percent increase.

“The console price cuts did not create a huge surge in demand,” Mitchell said.

Microsoft, based in Redmond, Washington, and the world’s largest software maker, cut the price of its most powerful Xbox 360 player by $100 on Aug. 27, matching a similar reduction by Tokyo-based Sony a week earlier for the PS3.

For the full year, Mitchell lowered his estimate for industry sales by $500 million to $20.2 billion, down 5 percent from $21.3 billion in 2008, as measured by NPD.

Electronic Arts, based in Redwood City, California, released “Madden NFL 10” for Xbox, PS3 and Nintendo Co.’s Wii on Aug. 14. “Madden NFL 09” for Xbox was the ninth-best selling game for 2008 with 1.87 million units, according to NPD.

To contact the reporter on this story: Anthony Palazzo in Los Angeles at apalazzo@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: September 10, 2009 16:36 EDT