If you had any doubts as to the viability of Apple's iPhone as a gaming platform, Sega has some numbers that might help change your mind. In the 20 days following Super Monkey Ball's launch on the new iPhone App Store, Sega reports over 300,000 copies of the game have been purchased. Purchased, mind you - you don't get shipping numbers on iPhone apps. That's nearly $3 million in revenue.
"That's a substantial business," says Simon Jeffery, president of Sega's U.S. division. "It gives iPhone a justifiable claim to being a viable gaming platform."
All in all, over 60 million programs have been purchased from the App Store since launch, generating around $30 million in sales in the first month alone. For a complete rundown of the games that launched with the store, be sure to hit up our Ultimate Guide to iPhone Games, while I cradle my Zune in my arms and weep quietly to myself. IPhone Software Sales Take Off: Apple's Jobs [The Wall Street Journal]