Microsoft Corp. on Thursday said it has sold more than five million Xbox One consoles to retail shops since the product was launched in November.

The company hadn't provided sales figures since early January, when said it sold 3.9 million units through the end of 2013.

Microsoft's statement comes a day after rival Sony Corp. said it sold more than seven million PlayStation 4 units, up from six million it had counted in March. Sony has released sales to consumers, while Microsoft in January said it would thereafter only release sales to retailers that carry the console.

Despite the difference in methodologies, the statements from the companies reinforce Sony's apparent lead over Microsoft since they released their new consoles in November.

Microsoft emphasized the positive comparison with its prior system. "The new generation is off to a strong start, with global Xbox One sales outpacing Xbox 360 by more than 60% at the same point in time," said Yusuf Mehdi, head of the Xbox division's marketing, strategy and business, in a statement.

The statement from Microsoft coincided with March U.S. retail sales data from NPD Group, which said hardware sales rose 78% from a year earlier to $395 million.

Game software didn't fare as well, however. Sales of new console and PC videogames at U.S. retail shops fell 28% in March, to $432 million from the same period a year ago, the research firm said.

Further, revenue from subscriptions to multiplayer Internet connected games, such as Activision Blizzard's "World of Warcraft," slumped nearly 19% to $84.8 million, according to SuperData Research, another firm. And revenue from games that are initially free to play rose just 9.4% to $554.6 million.

But not all parts of the software industry are slumping. Electronic Arts released its highly anticipated space-age shooting game "Titanfall" for the Xbox One and PCs on March 11, topping sales rankings in both retail and Internet-delivered sales, NPD and SuperData said.

Videogames sold and delivered over the Internet for consoles and PCs rose nearly 21% to $297.2 million, according to SuperData.

The mixed sales data suggests changing consumer habits are weighing on the industry's fortunes. Videogame executives have for months said purchasing of games made for older consoles dropped off quicker than expected following the release of Sony's new PlayStation 4 and Microsoft's new Xbox One last November.

Further, gamers are increasingly buying and downloading titles over the Internet. NPD said sales at traditional retailers represent roughly half of overall consumer videogame spending.

In terms of sales in March, SuperData said some top games played on mobile devices and social networking websites, particularly King Digital Entertainment's "Candy Crush Saga," were struggling to increase their customer base. SuperData said Zynga was separately struggling to to pull in additional sales from its key products, including its casino games.

Meanwhile, game enthusiasts were drawn to more sophisticated titles. In interviews, gamers said they were particularly excited by the new take on the war simulation genre brought by "Titanfall," including building-sized robot-like machines that can join battles.

Those enthusiast gamers had "once again becoming the industry focus," said Joost van Dreunen, head of SuperData, in a statement.

Sony's "Infamous: Second Son" action adventure superhero game released only for the PlayStation 4 was the second-most purchased title in retail shops during the month, NPD said, followed by Ubisoft's "South Park: The Stick of Truth," fashioned after the popular television cartoon series. SuperData said "Thief," a game by Eidos, was the second-most selling game for consoles and PCs delivered over the Internet, followed by Activision's "Call of Duty: Ghosts," war simulation game.

Sales of videogame accessories, such as toys that interact with games as well as gift cards that can be redeemed for items such as new story lines, rose 4% to $224 million, NPD said. The top two accessories were gamepads for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the firm added, as well as headsets for the new consoles.

Write to Ian Sherr at ian.sherr@wsj.com

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