Cut Is Latest Move To Increase Sales During Holidays
By NICK WINGFIELD
October 18, 2007; Page B4

Sony Corp. is slashing the starting price for PlayStation 3 consoles in the U.S. by $100, its latest attempt to boost slow sales of the machine in time for the holiday season.

The move, widely expected after similar actions in Japan and Europe, introduces a new PlayStation 3 model with a 40-gigabyte hard drive for $399. That compares with an earlier entry-level price of $499 on a model with 60 gigabytes of storage capacity. Sony in July lowered the price on the 60-gigabyte model from $599.

After the new pricing move, the PlayStation 3 is only $50 more than its closest competitor, Microsoft Corp.'s $349 entry-level Xbox 360 with a hard drive, though it is still more costly than Nintendo Co.'s $250 Wii.

Billy Pidgeon, game-industry analyst at IDC, predicted the price drop would invigorate PlayStation 3 sales this holiday season, though a bigger impact is likely to occur next year when a stronger lineup of titles will be available for the Sony system, including a new version of a popular game called Metal Gear Solid. "At that price, it comes down to a more justifiable present or gift to yourself," Mr. Pidgeon said.

Sony could use a big boost if it is to catch up to its competitors. U.S. retailers sold 131,000 PlayStation 3 consoles in August, or about 1.75 million total since it went on sale last November, according to NPD Group Inc. In contrast, there were 404,000 Nintendo Wii's sold in August in the U.S., or four million total since it was launched last holiday season, and 277,000 Xbox 360s in August, or 8.3 million since it went on sale two years ago, according to NPD.

The reduction reflects Sony's determination to spur more sales of the PlayStation 3, the Japanese electronics company's most important new product in years. Jack Tretton, president and chief executive officer of Sony's U.S. games division, acknowledged that the relatively high price of the PS3, which Sony has justified by including advanced technology such as a high-definition Blu-ray disc movie player, has been an impediment for many gamers.

"While we were incredibly excited about the technology in PS3 and while it was future-proofed to some degree, it was a bit ahead of its time," Mr. Tretton said in an interview. "The downside of all that technology was the price we had to offer it to consumer at retail. We knew $599 was going to be a challenge for some people based on traditional videogame pricing."

There's a catch to the lower price: The new $399 PlayStation model will not play games designed for the PlayStation 2, Sony's popular older game console. Mr. Tretton conceded that removing that capability, along with a few other features, isn't dramatically reducing Sony's cost of manufacturing the console but will instead encourage buyers of the entry-level PlayStation 3 to purchase more games designed specifically for the new system.

Mr. Tretton said the company's research showed that compatibility with PlayStation 2 games isn't likely to be missed by customers, who most likely already own the older system.

Sony has said it plans to sell 11 million PS3s world-wide this fiscal year, which ends in March.


黑字部分翻译：Tretton喷到与其说去掉兼容PS2是降低生产成本不如说是鼓励玩家买更多的PS3游戏

同时这句话也是争论的焦点



gaf上的美国同胞们各抒己见

有人说

感觉像个看出来Tretton的喷话哪点不合逻辑的索饭

有人说

这个索饭要以身试法抗议SCEA的做法

有人说

此人看法犀利说Tretton只是打官腔罢了，去掉兼容的目的是为了让高价版的PS3更有吸引力

有人说

比较客观，陈述了LU不会在意兼容PS2的观点，并且呼吁大家不要把帖子变成“stupid sony”帖

有人说

……


有人说

伤心的语调，看来这个索饭被Tretton伤的不浅……

技术的索尼:D

感觉回帖的都是FSF啊 :企鹅人家不要吗:

技术的索尼 怎么都有理

40GB版真正吸引我的地方

不是价格

而是有白色～～！！:内牛满面:

白色吸引力很高.

当年喷XO的时候估计没料到技术的骚尼如此没技术，自家的主机靠软件模拟压根玩不转:企鹅扑腾:

应该是为了突显高价版本，因为制造成本上，至少硬盘是没什么区别的，向下兼容性么...........

SF可爱的:遗弃猴:

兼容PS2的版本将来还生产吗？

我打算买白色

把国内汽车厂降价减配的招学来了.

向下兼容的取消是必然的，按目前的形式看40G版本的PS3确实是走了一步一举多得的高棋。
估计年底的销量低不了。

这样也能让之前花高价买PS3的用户心理平衡一点了,毕竟多了个向下兼容的功能.

提供了向下兼容然后又取消的,PS3是第一个吧.

建议能买到60g的赶快买60g,最好是老版,看运气了:D

ps:听传闻,楼主形象非常象张导演(北京杂种总导演),不愧都是在usa混的啊,毛发都那么有个性.赞美词汇,别误会,不是讽刺:吐舌头: :吐舌头: