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More Sony news

KilarneyKilarney
edited September 2006 in Everything Else
I just don't get this. Sony is dropping the price of the PS3 in Japan to $410. They are not dropping the price in the United States. Wouldn't you drop the price in the country where the XBox is much more competitive? Perhaps they are more worried about the Wii than I thought. I've always seen them as serving different types of gamers.

Comments

  • tuttle88tuttle88
    It was reported on 5AA (talk radio station that my grandmother listens to) that the price was cut in Australia but reading around Google news it appears that they may have just converted Yen to AU$. That's what I get for getting my gaming news from a radio station who's main audience is over 50.
  • CremlianCremlian
    Actually your guess Kilarney is probably correct. In Japan, Nintendo has taken the country by storm the last year or so with the DS and they are afraid that using the same tactic with the Wii, Nintendo will pull the same thing in the console war! I just don't know why they are lowering the price in the beginning at all. They are just going to sell out for the first few months anyway regardless. Drop the price soon after!
  • AprecheApreche
    I really don't think Sony can afford to drop the price in Japan and not in the US. There will be a flood of PS3s being imported from Japan, and US PS3s won't sell at all. A small price difference wouldn't have an effect, but $200 will. Have to wait and see how true this news is.
  • RymRym
    Don't forget that the US dollar is fairly weak. Grey-market imports will be hit hard by that, so it might not be a concern.
  • baltmatrixbaltmatrix
    1) They are putting all their hopes on the US market.

    2) They know that people in the US will buy it.

    3) The general US consumer is stupid.
  • SailSail
    edited September 2006

    3) The general US consumer is stupid.
    Maybe, but consider who will want to buy a PS3:

    -College kids with little to no money.

    -Parents, seeing the huge price tag and probably opting for the Wii instead.

    -Geeks who know how stupid Sony is being and will not buy it or, at least, not buy it anytime near launch.
    Post edited by Sail on
  • KieyKiey
    I definitly don't think I'll get a PS3 at launch, but between MGS4 and White Knight Story it's very tempting eventually. It's really going to come down to when those games come out, at least for me.
  • KilarneyKilarney
    edited September 2006
    -Parents, seeing the huge price tag and probably opting for the Wii instead.
    Think of how many spoiled little brats that are that will throw a fit if their parents don't buy them exactly what they want. I think that there are a ton of "parents" that will spend the extra $$$ instead of actually being a parent.
    Post edited by Kilarney on
  • AprecheApreche
    -Parents, seeing the huge price tag and probably opting for the Wii instead.
    Think of how many spoiled little brats that are that will throw a fit if their parents don't buy them exactly what they want. I think that there are a ton of "parents: that will spend the extra $$$ instead of actually being a parent.
    Unless of course, it's actually so expensive that they can't afford it, even if they wanted to buy it.
  • HMTKSteveHMTKSteve
    It's a simple law of marketing in the USA:

    If even only .01% of the US market buys your product that is about 250,000 units sold.

    Why do you think outfits such as QVC do so well?
  • AprecheApreche
    It's a simple law of marketing in the USA:

    If even only .01% of the US market buys your product that is about 250,000 units sold.

    Why do you think outfits such as QVC do so well?
    Because old ladies can't resist wasting money on useless shiny rocks?
  • jwallacejwallace
    I really don't think Sony can afford to drop the price in Japan and not in the US. There will be a flood of PS3s being imported from Japan, and US PS3s won't sell at all. A small price difference wouldn't have an effect, but $200 will. Have to wait and see how true this news is.
    As a fan of both Nintendo and older Sony products (but NOT the PS3 or PSP) I want to point out that from cursory glances at many "system wars" threads at Gamespot that the PS3 will still sell out in the US as there are plenty of early-adopter/rich-kid/spoiled punks who think buying the $600.00 PS3 is not only their definition of hardcore but also a status symbol. These will be the (and I have to say it) fools who run the risk of buying a console worth the amount of month's rent that may or may not be effective and can't be replaced due to it's limited availability.
  • RymRym
    I wonder how much the price will matter from a material standpoint. Sure, lots of people say they want a PS3 and plan to get one, but how many of those people can actually afford it? $600 + tax + controllers + games is a LOT of money, especially with large swathes of the American landscape depressed economically.
  • AprecheApreche
    Also, sure, many kids might buy a PS3. However, every company, except Nintendo, sells their consoles at a loss. How many of those kids will be able to get lots and lots of PS3 games? Right now there are maybe 2 or 3 PS3 games that look hot. I forsee a lot of PS3s collecting dust. Kids might whip it out to show their friends how cool they are, but after the initial shiny factor wears off, how many PS3s will get constant use?

    There is one good scenario I see for SONY. They claim the console will last 10 years. Maybe 3 years from now the price will be lower, the bugs will be worked out, the games will be more plentiful and the console will be redesigned. It's like the PS3 we're going to get this year is a pre-release beta that's super expensive. Only the craziest people will get it. A few years from now the real PS3 will come out for the normal people to get. I bet that if Nintendo hadn't come out with the Wii, SONY would have held off as long as it could have. I submit their just-in-time manufacturing as evidence.
  • jwallacejwallace
    I wonder how much the price will matter from a material standpoint. Sure, lots of people say they want a PS3 and plan to get one, but how many of those people can actually afford it? $600 + tax + controllers + games is a LOT of money, especially with large swathes of the American landscape depressed economically.
    Here's a scenario: many of the early adopters may just do what they did when the PS2 was released: buy the console but instead of games (what IS the final release list of launch titles?) either buy BD movies or take advantage of it's backwards compatibility to buy and play cheap PS2 Greatest Hits titles or just play with the games in the vast libraries that they may already have.

    What Sony may not realize is that they plan to make up thier high production costs by generating revenue from overpriced software sales, but because the price of the PS3 is DOUBLE the price of the previous console many buyers WILL buy the hardware just because it's in limited quantities but can't afford the games. It may not be a perfect scenario but it is realistic. Look at Sony's period from November 2000 - October 2001; it took a whole year until Grand Theft Auto III came out that adequate revenue could be generated to offset (some) of Sony's losses.
  • RymRym
    The PS3's lack of rumble support significantly detracts from the allure of its backward-compatibility. Couple that with the fact that you can get a PS2 for less than $200, and it makes it almost a non-issue. A scant minority of American households have the capability to take advantage of BluRay, so that's not really a significant selling point either...
  • KilarneyKilarney
    edited September 2006
    Sony announced that game prices for the PS3 will be $60. $840 for a console with four games - and no accessories!
    Post edited by Kilarney on
  • baltmatrixbaltmatrix
    I want a PS3. Why? I have now seen games that I want. But I refuse to buy the thing during the first year. I utterly refuse. I will not get my money's worth from the system until at LEAST Chrsitmas time 2007 since that is when the games I want will be out. Now the Wii on the other hand has many games that I want right out of the gate. Also when a video game system and a game together cost more than I pay for rent...yeah...that's were I draw the line.
  • RymRym
    I'll probably buy a PS3 when the PS4 comes out ^_~ After all, I plan to pick up a PS2 sometime next year.
  • baltmatrixbaltmatrix
    I remember when the PS2 was open for pre-order. I got a pre-order with 100 dollars on it right away. That was about 3 to 5 months out from the launch date. I then worked at saving money. Every $100 I made, half was put in the PS2 jar and Half was put in my pocket. By launch time I had enough for the system, three games, an extra controller and a memory card. Woot. I was happy. I'm still very happy with my PS2 purchase. I am currently playing Xenosage 3 and Okami on it.

    Sadly this time around I just don't have the same zeal. There is no really reason for me to buy the PS3 since (1) I don't care about Blue Ray like I cared about having my first DVD player (which was the PS2); (2) no games I want at launch and (3) no pre-orders for me to get excited about. Plus the lackluster showing of the System lately has me kinda bummed. I just don't really want to play it when I have a perfectly working PS2 right now.
  • trogdor9trogdor9

    3) The general US consumer is stupid.
    Maybe, but consider who will want to buy a PS3:

    -College kids with little to no money.

    -Parents, seeing the huge price tag and probably opting for the Wii instead.

    -Geeks who know how stupid Sony is being and will not buy it or, at least, not buy it anytime near launch.
    You seem to forget the ingenuity of complete idiots.

    Unrelated: jwallace, please check the HTML radio button under the post box if you're going to quote someone.
  • SailSail
    Isn't it an oxymoron to use 'ingenuity' and 'idiots' in the same sentence?

    And besides, I think poeple can only be stupid to an extent. If some average Joe, typical american moron, notices that the cashier is ringing up over $1000 for the PS3, extra controlers, and games, their gonna know they made somewhat of a mistake. Perhaps the consumer will still purchase it, but I have faith that he will at least somewhat recognize his mistake.
  • jwallacejwallace

    3) The general US consumer is stupid.
    Maybe, but consider who will want to buy a PS3:

    -College kids with little to no money.

    -Parents, seeing the huge price tag and probably opting for the Wii instead.

    -Geeks who know how stupid Sony is being and will not buy it or, at least, not buy it anytime near launch.
    You seem to forget the ingenuity of complete idiots.

    Unrelated: jwallace, please check the HTML radio button under the post box if you're going to quote someone.
    Point taken. I was on lunch and only had a limited time to post which is why the quotes look horrible. Thanks (-_-')
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