But IDC expects solid growth in software to offset weakness in hardware.

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The time savings alone can offset the cost of the software.

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For the full year, retail video game sales overall were down 6%, as a 13% increase in accessory sales was more than offset by declines of 6% in software and 13% in hardware.

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It's intriguing software: take three digital photos of your face, each at a slightly offset angle, and upload them to BigStage.

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To offset that inevitable slowdown in new database sales, Ellison has been betting big on applications software.

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