Well, now, GamesIndustry.biz editor Chris Morris, wrote an article explaining how the lack of a price cut for the PS3 is just a big mistake and a missed opportunity for Sony in this holiday season:
Rumors about the redesigned system have been around since E3. But Sony's decision to price the new entry-level system at a point that's $20 higher than the current low-end PS3 was downright baffling.
While the Superslim PS3 is still priced lower than the Wii U, Sony opted to bypass an opportunity to boost its market share this holiday. To put it another way: new form factors are all well and good, but at this point in the game - and in the current economic climate - people are making decisions based on price.
"I think the form factor looks like a nice improvement, but if I were Sony I would focus more on lowering prices," says Colin Sebastian of R.W. Baird. "At this point, in terms of competing at the end of the cycle and in terms of driving more mind share, I don't think consumers are as interested in the prettiest console they can find, but rather the one that has the best value."
Wedbush Securities' Michael Pachter agrees.
"I think Sony is missing an opportunity to differentiate on price," he says. "And I think they're going to be caught flat footed when Microsoft does something like bundling Kinect with the Xbox for $200."
Other analysts call the pricing decision a "non-event" and added that the current financial situation at Sony might be one of the motivations behind the move...
"[The PlayStation division has] a corporate mandate, with Kaz Hirai in charge, of trying to make money - and cutting the price isn't always in line with that mandate," he says. "The reality is Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo have two choices now. They can cut prices on current models or they can extend the life cycles of the current machines by adding more technology and bundling games with them. Sony is clearly in the second camp."
"They want to maintain the brand value and the equity in the Sony name," says McNealy. "They want to make sure Sony's not associated with a cheap box. So putting in more value also lets them to keep the price up and allows them to charge $60 for AAA titles."
Only one thing is sure, Sony is leaving money on the table with its Superslim PS3 pricing decision - and in doing so is giving both Microsoft and Nintendo a chance to gain market share.
You can read the complete article on the link below!
Sony haves a history of overpricing their products which is why their sales always be low. The only time Sony was really "on top" was in the late 90's early 2000's.
PS1 was their revolution
PS2 was their flagship
PS3 is their greatest creation UNTIL they overpriced it at lauch and now with the super slim it should be atleast $200
buy hey it's the Sony way overprice everything that says Sony or sorry I meant to say $ony
Their biggest fumble is that the end user can either buy this used ps3, install cfw and be able to play Twinaphex's emulators on it, play ps1, ps2, and psp backups (via cobra), Ps3 backups via Multiman, Play media through showtime, Play different homebrew titles, PSn titles with ReactPSN, or go to dex and pretty much that as well, or... they could buy this new ps3, lose all of that and get to hear 10 year olds whine all day, have your credit card information archived in an easy to search format for all hackers to find, bend over for the terms of service, and beyond that, you get to thank Sony everyday for all of that.
GI.biz: 'PS3 Super Slim could be a Super Stumble'
Reply With Quote
