Sept. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Sony Corp.’s Walkman digital music player outsold Apple Inc.’s iPod in Japan last week for the first time in more than four years, according to electronics research firm BCN Inc.

The Japanese company’s share of portable music players sold climbed to 43 percent in the week ended Aug. 30, exceeding Apple’s 42.1 percent, ending the lead that the iPod maker had kept since January 2005, the Tokyo-based researcher said in a statement yesterday. The iPhone also cannibalized iPod sales, according to BCN, which didn’t count the iPhone in the survey because the product is also a wireless handset.

Sony, whose Walkman cassette players pioneered the portable-music industry in the late 1970s, gained market share after introducing models including the W series of cordless players that sell for under 10,000 yen ($108). Sony in July raised its sales forecast for the devices. IPod prices in Japan range from 8,800 yen for the shuffle to 47,800 yen for the 32- gigabyte touch model, according to the Apple Store.

“Sony has gained customers seeking less expensive products and those seeking high quality by broadening its lineup,” Kazuharu Miura, an analyst with Daiwa Institute of Research Ltd., said by telephone today. “But you can’t really say Sony regained its competitiveness against Apple unless it improves its market share in the U.S. and Europe.”

Sony fell 1 percent to close at 2,430 yen on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, trimming its gain this year to 26 percent. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average dropped 0.6 percent. Apple, based in Cupertino, California, closed 0.1 percent lower at $165.18 on the Nasdaq Stock Market yesterday.

Japan Market

Sony on July 30 lifted its sales forecast for digital music players to 6.7 million units for the year ending March 2010 from its May estimate of 6.3 million. That compares with 7 million sold in the previous year.

Sales of portable music players in Japan fell by 13.5 percent in August from a year earlier, a fifth straight month of decline, according to BCN. New products by Sony or Apple are expected to revitalize the stagnant market, the researcher said in the statement.

Apple may introduce new iPod models at its “rock and roll” event on Sept. 9, helping the company regain its share, the researcher said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Pavel Alpeyev in Tokyo at palpeyev@bloomberg.net; Mariko Yasu in Tokyo at myasu@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: September 3, 2009 06:29 EDT

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