SCEE: Price Cut Time?
Microsoft drops Xbox 360 to £129. Sony, your move. And quick.Published 16/09/2008 at 9:11 by nofi
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Microsoft has confirmed that the Xbox 360 will see another price drop in the UK, taking the Arcade unit down to just £129.99. The cheapest PS3 is now more than double that, at £299.99, whilst the top spec 360 model, the Elite, is £229.99, which is an absolute steal. These prices are effective from Friday.
“Xbox 360 has now sold over 20 million consoles worldwide and due to its unprecedented success, we are now able to pass on the rewards of that success to the consumer with a new retail pricing from £129.99”, said Neil Thompson, Senior Regional Director, Microsoft UK. “With more games, more entertainment with Xbox LIVE and now even more value, we are looking forward to welcoming more customers into the leading Next Generation console, Xbox 360.”
Incredible prices, and surely SCEE can’t be thinking that leaving the PS3 at £300 is a good idea. If we don’t see a decent price cut from Sony it’s going to be a very tough Christmas for them. Time to stop thinking we’re made of money, guys.
Comments
Please note that all comments are the opinion of the individual author and not TheSixthAxis.
colossalblue | 16/09/2008 09:48
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1399 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
Can’t agree enough, I posted in the forum about this here:
http://www.thesixthaxis.com/forum/general-chat/360-uk-price-drop/page-1/
I really can’t see another option, only to take the financial hit this year and recoup next year when they’ve got a larger user base.
montage | 16/09/2008 09:52
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12 TSA Points | Member since: Sep 2008
True, Sony need to reduce their price to compete.
However the reason Microsoft is dropping that price is because they need to tempt people who see the current 360 prices as being a tad steep for something prone to breaking.
I’d rather spend £300 on something that won’t die for the duration of its life (I still have 2 launch PS2s in fully working condition!) than half that for something that needs replacing half a dozen times, requires an expensive WI-FI adaptor and a monthly subscription for the online network.
The price we’re getting the PS3 at the moment is good value, it’s obviously just not affordable enough.
monty2k | 16/09/2008 10:43
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29 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
Think of the Credit Crunch! England is on the edge of another recession!
Anyone else think that this is a very smart move by MS?
The financial markets are apparently tearing themselves apart at the seams and consumer spending is set to decrease. As the cost of living escalates, Gamers with reduced budgets will now see the 360 as a much better deal – It is essentially the same experience as a PS3 but it has a lower retail price, lower game prices and a larger games library.
I would also like to make a predicition… the Wii will continue to sell like hotcakes despite the credit crunch.
Michael | 16/09/2008 11:18
Team TSA: Development
2217 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
So, a 360 is now pretty much the same price as the GameCube as at launch. That is just so low. It’s a real psychological price too, I think. £130 for a next-gen console! Wow! etc
Sony needs a £199.99 SKU for Christmas perhaps?
Anyway, I’ve just registered the360axis.com.
colossalblue | 16/09/2008 12:05
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1399 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
You’re right, everything you said. Right.
Maybe a £199.99 SKU with a 20GB HDD, one sixaxis controller and nothing else? I really think it’s about getting a larger user base now and making their money over the next year.
I have a 360 controller I use for PC gaming, do you think that’s enough to get me credibility on the360axis.com?
Michael | 16/09/2008 13:03
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2217 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
Dude, you are going to run the360axis with me and nofi. Nofi doesn’t know this yet, but he won’t mind,
bantam | 16/09/2008 12:53
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44 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
Definetly need a price cut on one of the SKUs to come under £200 going into Christmas. Jo public parent picking up a unit for little Jimmy won’t know the difference and we’re getting to that stage of the lifecycle now and MS know it.
Install bases mean software support, Sony are in parity or ahead in Europe at the moment and really can’t afford to throw that away.
3shirts | 16/09/2008 14:06
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2490 TSA Points | Member since: Aug 2008
Hit the nail on the head mate. They have to look at the ‘parent buying a Christmas present’ market and 90% of that market have no idea about the additional costs of online play, wireless adapters etc they just see two consoles, two prices and pick the cheapest!
cc_star | 16/09/2008 13:06
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7874 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
My point exactly
http://www.thesixthaxis.com/forum/general-chat/360-uk-price-drop/page-1
The last time a big gaming giant misjudged the public mood and didn’t shift enough units, look what happened,
Sega pulled the plug because of a weak Christmas
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gamesblog/2008/sep/11/gamesinterviews.microsoft1?gusrc=rss&feed=technology
If the only way to sell more unit is to drop the price, then Sony will lose even more than they already have
Can they afford to drop the price. No!
Can they afford not to. No!
I don’t know what the answer is but I sure hope someone at Sony does
discharge | 16/09/2008 13:43
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249 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
Sony are here for the long haul, they know what their competitors are doing and they know how well they themselves are doing in such a short time. They have no need to drop the price at all this year. They will however drop the price post christmas(Jan-Feb time)why?, simple! – for the past 3-5years retailers seem to make as much money and shift more items after the silly period(thats the UK Im talking about), sales begin in earnest to shift stock to make way for the new, I think sony would be wise to drop the price then especially as some big name games are coming out in march n april, they will normally start their TV advertising campaign then as well as it’ll be the PS3’s 3rd birthday by then too.
Thats my opinion anyway
BioEye | 17/09/2008 21:38
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901 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
If you want a fun, family game (LittleBigPlanet) for parents to buy their children at Christmas, then don’t make the console cost £300.
colossalblue | 16/09/2008 17:33
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1399 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
Awesome, I’m not prepared to buy an xbox but I might melt an old sky+ box a bit with a hairdryer, it’d look the same, especially if I set it to record so we get the authentic red circle on the front…