November sales data drops continue to gather for Sony, and especially for its Playstation line. CNNMoney calls the PS3 a “sinking ship” in its Silicon Alley Insider column after reviewing sales that declined 19 percent compared to last year. The wording may be a little exaggerated, but they do make the valid point that the PS3 needs a serious price cut, and very soon. Otherwise, despite its ten year lifespan, it will fall behind the Xbox 360 permanently.

The PS3’s problems are attributed to three causes: a higher price, public disinterest in one of its most pricy features – the Blu-Ray, and not enough system-seller software. The price issue is a clear-cut case, but the other two are a bit iffier. Blu-Ray is more and more popular with each month since it won the HD format wars: Netflix announced a dramatic rise in Blu-Ray renters at the start of December, and hit its year-end target over a month early, in spite of an extra fee they added for the format. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment president David Bishop recently said in an interview that Blu-Ray sales are growing at a rate of 200%-300% over last year.

The second issue however, whether the PS3 has a collection of solid flagship titles is a little more subjective. It’s hard for instance to dismiss Metal Gear Solid 4, LittleBIGPlanet, Resistance 1 and 2, and Uncharted. Nevertheless, one cannot ignore the huge momentum the Xbox 360 is gathering in this rivalry, or the matter of Wii, whose massive sales mean it’s not even concerned with the other two consoles’ squabble. Regardless of what the short-term costs might be, the noose tightens around Sony’s neck as $400 PS3s gather dust on the shelves.