John Koller, Sony's Director of Hardware Marketing, has revealed that there are 14 million active accounts on Sony's PlayStation Network. This announcement comes alongside the second anniversary of the PlayStation 3's launch in the US.

Koller made the comments on the US PlayStation.Blog and with timing that's none too subtle. Microsoft's 'New Xbox Experience' is due to launch tomorrow and, at a time when the Redmond giant is boasting 14 million Xbox Live users, it seems the usual Christmas console wars are getting underway with a couple of minor PR warning shots across Microsoft's port bow from Sony.

With nearly 17 million PS3's in homes worldwide according to Koller, 14 million active PSN accounts makes for a pretty impressive online attach rate that would better that of the Xbox 360 (with Microsoft's console having sold 22 million units worldwide as of last month).

PSN offers a free service for online gaming (unlike the subscription based Xbox Live), although European gamers still await services such as a video store on PSN (which is already available on Xbox Live).

Sony's seemingly forever delayed PlayStation Home hub is currently being rolled out under a closed beta (for those lucky enough to have received an invite), so it'll certainly be interesting to see how the service stacks up against the New Xbox Experience when it's eventually released.