AfterDawn: News

Sony President suggests PS3 price drops

Yesterday, Sony President Ryoji Chubachi suggested to a Japanese newspaper that the company was not "ruling out" a price cut for its $600 USD PlayStation 3.

Chubachi's comments add fuel to the fire that started last week with the news that Sony's BDP-300 Blu ray player would hit stores with a retail price of $499 USD, a price $100 less than expected.



"Sony does not rule out the possibility of lowering the price of the PS3", said Chubachi to the Japanese daily paper Yomiuri Shimbun. He added that the company was making a "full assessment" of the situation before it made a decision on pricing.

With Blu ray production costs lowering daily, Sony could take the opportunity to lower the price of its game console which is still lagging in sales behind the Nintendo Wii and the Microsoft Xbox 360. Many consumers and analysts blame the large price tag for its lagging sales. Although the comments have certainly caused a stir, a price cut is not set in stone. All that is true as of today is that Sony can no longer claim the PS3 is the lowest priced Blu ray player on the market.

Source:
HD Digest

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 8 Jun 2007 8:24

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• 48 comments

• spydah

  I say dropping it to maybe um $400 - $450 then it will be a lot more attractive. Then we will have less of the whining because of the price. But with the way the Sony haters are they will find a issue in that haha.

  8.6.2007 08:45 #1

• scott2k7

  u americans get it cheap dude its £425 over here work it out

  8.6.2007 09:44 #2

• spydah

  Damn yall gotta pay $845 in USD for a PS3. Thats a shitty deal. If that was the price here I would never get one. Haha

  8.6.2007 10:45 #3

• spydah

  How much is a 360 there and a Wii?

  8.6.2007 10:45 #4

• scott2k7

  wii is £180
  360 is £200 for core
  premium is £270 with one or 2 games

  8.6.2007 10:48 #5

• NexGen76

  Quote:"Sony does not rule out the possibility of lowering the price of the PS3", said Chubachi to the Japanese daily paper Yomiuri Shimbun. He added that the company was making a "full assessment" of the situation before it made a decision on pricing.Like you guys really got a choice right now.400 or 450 sound good also to me.

  8.6.2007 10:58 #6

• ChromeMud

  If they drop the price,so will Microsoft and that's the problem.
  Can Sony really afford to go toe-to-toe with Microsoft?
  If anything,Microsoft will drop the price first pushing Sony to
  compete and not the other way round.

  8.6.2007 11:08 #7

• spydah

  The cost of living where you at scott2k7 must be extremely high. The Wii is damn near the price of a core 360.

  8.6.2007 11:12 #8

• spydah

  Originally posted by ChromeMud:If they drop the price,so will Microsoft and that's the problem.
  Can Sony really afford to go toe-to-toe with Microsoft?
  If anything,Microsoft will drop the price first pushing Sony to
  compete and not the other way round.
  I kinda agree with you ChromeMud but in this case Sony has not choice but to do it since they placed a new Blu-ray player on the market lower then the PS3 which they earlier stated was the lowest costing Blu-ray player. So they will look stupid if they keep holding this price. Plus if they do that they will need to make it less then the standard Blu-ray player. Either way they shooting their selves with the cost of this stuff.

  8.6.2007 11:15 #9

• NexGen76

  Originally posted by ChromeMud:If they drop the price,so will Microsoft and that's the problem.
  Can Sony really afford to go toe-to-toe with Microsoft?
  If anything,Microsoft will drop the price first pushing Sony to
  compete and not the other way round.There has been reports of the 360 dropping down to 199.But i dont think thats true.Sony can't go toe-to-toe with microsoft or vice verse because both system don't have the same tech & production cost is different.
  
  
  Quote:All that is true as of today is that Sony can no longer claim the PS3 is the lowest priced Blu ray player on the market.You right they can't hang there heads on that anymore.I don't think Sony realize how much they need to drop the price of there system to get into the console race.Anything less than hundred buck isn't going to be acceptable.

  8.6.2007 12:13 #10

• ZippyDSM

  euro and other gamers get max anal carnage when they go and buy thier stuff20% tax is bad enough but the corps are paddign it a extra 20+in most cases heres a thought set a world wide price point and sale it at that...morons........
  
  
  the PS3 needs a price drop bad 200 would be prefect 100 was be ok.
  
  if they 360 goes 199 I am gettign it a year early :O
  
  
  but I think it will hit 250 before then,altho if they can undercut both NIN and sony.....good god they would push consoles and games like mad..

  8.6.2007 12:21 #11

• Riotard

  To all poeple who live in Britain or to anyone that can work out the exchange rate and knwos what teh exchange rate of $ to £.
  
  In Japan the PS3 costs £200! sry but that just doesn't seem right peopel in Briatin have to pay over double the cost! Sony's pricing for different regions make absolutly no sense, as far as i see it they seem to make heavy looses in areas liek japan and america, yet probably make a profit off Europe and UK, because a price change of 200% is a little bit crazy!
  
  This is one reason why i have an xbox 360, and i;ve seen 360 premimuns with +1 wireless controll and +2 games in makros for £200! and the core system for £150 + 2 games in makro aswell!
  
  People also forget that M$ were selling the 360 at a loss to begin with aswell! And i beleive that, that fact is often over looked. People have only bought ps3 for the BR, if you ahve bought it for a gamign consol all i ahve to say is WHY! the games out on it now are poor, if u argue i want FF or MGS, well why don't u wait for the game to coem out then buy one, the price might have dropped (lol) and don;t say oh we we thoguht they were going to be sold out, because just liek in American and Japan they havn't been sold out!

  8.6.2007 12:59 #12

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by Riotard:To all people who live in Britain or to anyone that can work out the exchange rate and knows what the exchange rate of $ to £.
  
  In Japan the PS3 costs £200! sorry but that just doesn't seem right people in Britain have to pay over double the cost! Sony's pricing for different regions make absolutely no sense, as far as i see it they seem to make heavy looses in areas like japan and America, yet probably make a profit off Europe and UK, because a price change of 200% is a little bit crazy!
  
  This is one reason why i have an xbox 360, and i;ve seen 360 premiums with +1 wireless control and +2 games in makros for £200! and the core system for £150 + 2 games in makro as well!
  
  People also forget that M$ were selling the 360 at a loss to begin with as well! And i believe that, that fact is often over looked. People have only bought ps3 for the BR, if you have bought it for a gaming console all i have to say is WHY! the games out on it now are poor, if u argue i want FF or MGS, well why don't u wait for the game to come out then buy one, the price might have dropped (lol) and don;t say oh we we thought they were going to be sold out, because just like in American and Japan they haven't been sold out!
  ============================================================
  Ever since regioning began they have been more interested is making there X5 profit off other regions and selling it cheaper in others to sale more to gain more X5 profit, frankly the 300JP 350 US 500 UK,ect game is sicking sale it all for 350 even you get profit back by selling more games to go with the extra systems you have sold but no they want to do "proffering WTF" thus another reason to boycott the bastards import yourself or buy used better to be a year or 2 late in gaming than to feed the greedy SOBs.....

  8.6.2007 13:11 #13

• 26r0cK

  I dont care wat anybody has to say but a price drop is always good news. And if Sony can drop the price once then they can drop it again and again. With the price drop and Metal Gear Solid 4 coming i just cant wait. Keep bringing the good news :)

  8.6.2007 13:31 #14

• hughjars

  .....andyet they have told their financial people and the media all along (as recently as when the financial results for the quarter ending march 31st 2007 came out) that significant price cuts are years off and that they would use any production cost savings generated mainly for reducing losses not prices.
  
  I wonder if this is a sign of desperation?

  8.6.2007 14:35 #15

• limelight

  $529 + a free game (thats worth a shit) would be a nice start.

  8.6.2007 14:45 #16

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by hughjars:.....andyet they have told their financial people and the media all along (as recently as when the financial results for the quarter ending march 31st 2007 came out) that significant price cuts are years off and that they would use any production cost savings generated mainly for reducing losses not prices.
  
  I wonder if this is a sign of desperation?Of course they are hurting but the question is how much are they jsut getting their X5 profit halved? are the just making a normal profit? its hard to tell they play with moeny so much who really knows, all that matters is gettign the PS3 out and about the onyl way to do that is to slow production and nearly halving the price onces that is done all the systems that are out will drop in price they have to thus balance should restore itself a bit and the "bleeding" be minmialized as game sales rise they really have no other choice because the onyl option thats left is digging in their heels and watching profit fall until theres no profit left..

  8.6.2007 14:48 #17

• UHALL

  Buy a WII. I traded one of my 360's for a wii and its alot of fun.Whats up Zippy

  8.6.2007 15:37 #18

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by UHALL:Buy a WII. I traded one of my 360's for a wii and its alot of fun.Whats up ZippyUHALL
  My allergies I'll officially have 2 "Wii"s when Metroid prime 3 comes out hehehehe
  
  a 360 is on my list but frankly its stealing sht from the PC so it can wait plus the cpu/gpu revamp that will be standard next year.

  8.6.2007 15:41 #19

• borhan9

  I wont belive it until i see it. But still makes me not want to purchase one.

  8.6.2007 15:48 #20

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by borhan9:I wont belive it until i see it. But still makes me not want to purchase one.A "new" 360 or a 400$ PS3? :P

  8.6.2007 16:22 #21

• ChiknLitl

  Originally posted by ChromeMud:If they drop the price,so will Microsoft and that's the problem.
  Can Sony really afford to go toe-to-toe with Microsoft?
  If anything,Microsoft will drop the price first pushing Sony to
  compete and not the other way round.It does not seem to me MS is interested in dropping prices at all. Case in point: the "elite" price of $479! That's the "upgraded" console which brings it up to speed with what it should have been from the beginning, i.e. HDMI capable, etc. That does not make me want to go out and buy another 360 any more than buying a $600 PS3. And MS is finally making money on the console! They can afford to drop the price quite a bit to sell more of them but they don't. IMO there's no excuse for these prices.

  8.6.2007 17:36 #22

• ZippyDSM

  Quote:Originally posted by ChromeMud:If they drop the price,so will Microsoft and that's the problem.
  Can Sony really afford to go toe-to-toe with Microsoft?
  If anything,Microsoft will drop the price first pushing Sony to
  compete and not the other way round.It does not seem to me MS is interested in dropping prices at all. Case in point: the "elite" price of $479! That's the "upgraded" console which brings it up to speed with what it should have been from the beginning, i.e. HDMI capable, etc. That does not make me want to go out and buy another 360 any more than buying a $600 PS3. And MS is finally making money on the console! They can afford to drop the price quite a bit to sell more of them but they don't. IMO there's no excuse for these prices.
  ================================================================
  hers the "trick" MS is not compelled to lower it they are now just turning a "profit" the Wii is roughly 100 from the premium 360 price MS is basically waiting on sony to kick the ball so MS can counter.
  
  
  They all are putting off lowering the price I have a feeling Nin will drop 100 int he next year or so regardless of what MS/Sony dose.

  8.6.2007 18:03 #23

• TypeRice

  good thing i got my PS3 for only $450 from ToysRUs w/ 25% amex wishlist coupon.

  8.6.2007 18:57 #24

• borhan9

  Quote:A "new" 360 or a 400$ PS3? :PI mean the ps3 price drop. :P

  8.6.2007 19:45 #25

• ZippyDSM

  Quote:[quote]A "new" 360 or a 400$ PS3? :PI mean the ps3 price drop. :P[/quote]
  I dunno 400 is a fair price for the PS3.
  
  but because I am a mouse fan for aiming and theres no kb/mouse adapter for it yet I'd rather wait and get it cheaper :P

  8.6.2007 20:01 #26

• borhan9

  Quote:I dunno 400 is a fair price for the PS3.
  
  but because I am a mouse fan for aiming and theres no kb/mouse adapter for it yet I'd rather wait and get it cheaper :PI never said $400 is cheap. I am just saying im glad its going down. For me ill be happy when it hits $A199 :)

  8.6.2007 23:48 #27

• REAM

  Originally posted by scott2k7:u americans get it cheap dude its £425 over here work it outi know. We get the sh!t end off all the deals. :@
  
  but remeber, we earn more than them, our AVG wage is £19,000....
  
  (thats about $36,000)
  
  and our minimum wage is £16,000 ($32,000 aprox)
  
  
  so in the end it works out.

  9.6.2007 01:48 #28

• ZippyDSM

  Quote:Originally posted by scott2k7:u americans get it cheap dude its £425 over here work it outi know. We get the sh!t end off all the deals. :@
  
  but remeber, we earn more than them, our AVG wage is £19,000....
  
  (thats about $36,000)
  
  and our minimum wage is £16,000 ($32,000 aprox)
  
  
  so in the end it works out.
  -----------------------------------------------------
  It only works out if you believe their price and wage fixing :X

  9.6.2007 02:32 #29

• gamelover

  Average wage of £19,000 and minimum wage £16,000 HA! What part of the UK do you live in because down here in Cornwall in the UK you'd be lucky to scratch £13,500!!
  
  The UK is RIP-OFF BRITAIN, little Switzerland as we are now dubbed by most of the world. Sorry but the average wage is just total Bulls**t. The actual average wage the government states is £27,000 for the UK. I WISH!!!
  
  It's about time this country had a revolution and put these moronic politicians and corporations in their place. The politicians are supposed to be employed FOR US, not to dictate and overprice everything and falsify the figures of average earnings and unemployment etc. If we put them in power they should work to give us the best income they can, the lowest taxes, lowest prices, best services etc. They now take it that they can do whatever they want and no-one can do anything about it.
  
  The new freedom of information act and the politicians relegating themselves from it so we can't see what their personal expenses are says it all! They are taking our money, taxes etc and don't want us to know what they are spending it on. Plasma TV's, ipods, cars, houses, executive apartments, holidays etc. It takes the fuxxxking pxxs and we just sit back and let them do it.

  9.6.2007 05:55 #30

• hughjars

  Microsoft have moved according to this report today here - HULIQ, NC - 52 minutes ago; http://www.huliq.com/24134/microsoft-cuts-xbox-360-price .
  
  XBox 360 now $199.
  
  So, it's over to Sony to respond now
  (and I bet their bankers, financiers, shareholders, accountancy/financial dept are weeping blood right now).

  9.6.2007 07:52 #31

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by hughjars:Microsoft have moved according to this report today here - HULIQ, NC - 52 minutes ago; http://www.huliq.com/24134/microsoft-cuts-xbox-360-price .
  
  XBox 360 now $199.
  
  So, it's over to Sony to respond now
  (and I bet their bankers, financiers, shareholders, accountancy/financial dept are weeping blood right now).thats GBP right?
  I cant find anything that says its USD 0-o

  9.6.2007 07:59 #32

• hughjars

  Zippy man wipe the sleep from your eyes. ;)
  
  It's a US site and it says right at the top
  
  Quote:Microsoft surprised video console gamers with the new price for Xbox 360 – now it costs only $199.$199
  
  That's slightly over £100 GBP.
  
  If only they would be as aggressive as that with their pricing here I might buy one......once the 2nd gen 65nm versions appear.
  
  But as for Sony and non-committal comments about them shifting prices?
  I think we'll see some movement from them next week.
  
  .....well, well, well, eh?
  Who'd a thought this a couple of years back huh?
  Sony forced into responding to the new-comer.
  How the wheel turns eh?

  9.6.2007 08:03 #33

• REAM

  Originally posted by gamelover:Average wage of £19,000 and minimum wage £16,000 HA! What part of the UK do you live in because down here in Cornwall in the UK you'd be lucky to scratch £13,500!!AHH, well i live in london....

  9.6.2007 14:31 #34

• ChiknLitl

  Quote:Zippy man wipe the sleep from your eyes. ;)
  
  It's a US site and it says right at the top If that's a U.S. site they'd better learn how to write and spell proper english. There are several grammatical and spelling errors that suggest to me that at least the author of that column is not american.
  
  From the link:
  
  Quote:Sony’s PlayStation is mainly oriented on hard gamers, who are willing to pay the price for performance quality and ‘real game’. It has a smaller, but at the same time a strong market.
  What the hell is a "hard gamer" and WTF is "real game"?!

  9.6.2007 16:46 #35

• hughjars

  Quote:If that's a U.S. site - If you click on the 'about us' link you get an address for 'Hickory; NC (North Carolina).
  
  Now it might be that there's some convoluted fakery going on but I doubt it.
  I reckon it's just a US news site.
  
  Any complaints about the standard of their writing really ought to be taken up with them.

  9.6.2007 16:53 #36

• ChiknLitl

  I wasn't getting ornery. I just found it comical that this source was quoted as reliable. I don't doubt that this is a U.S. site or even the possibility of a 360 price drop.

  9.6.2007 16:58 #37

• ZippyDSM

  ChiknLitl
  *uses paint thiner to wipe the sleep from my brain only wiping parts of it from exsistance*
  
  wait I have brain?
  LOL
  
  MS has not confirmed it but that would not be to wild for the core to go to 199.

  9.6.2007 16:59 #38

• ChiknLitl

  Originally posted by ZIppyDSM:MS has not confirmed it but that would not be to wild for the core to go to 199.And about time as well!

  9.6.2007 17:02 #39

• ZippyDSM

  Quote:Originally posted by ZIppyDSM:MS has not confirmed it but that would not be to wild for the core to go to 199.And about time as well!I'd rather have the premium begin 199 or 250 :P
  
  
  

  
  
  FIGHT THE M.A.F.I.A.A.
  

  9.6.2007 17:10 #40

• vinny13

  Meh I don't really care...
  
  It'll drop by Chistmas if they want to make some money.
  
  And if it doesn't, I'll still get one(just got an iMac so I'm broke lol).

  9.6.2007 18:41 #41

• bicuspid

  Did I seriously just see someone from America just state the average wage is $32K a year!?! HAHA, I worked at a very "good" job as of last Wednesday at Blue Cross Blue Shield, worked there for almost 2 years, after raises I made $24.4K a year (with very high "world class" ranking).... That is a "Decent" wage if you look at the statistics of employment in many metropolitan areas anymore! I live in NY, 45 mins from NYC/Manhattan. EU prices are indeed hiked up, but the poor sections I have found do indeed even out to the poor sections of America anymore. I feel the world market is finally even, only sadly, it is highly(!!!) deceiving. The only way it is fair at all anymore is if you are upper-class. No difference between middle or lower class anymore, just schmucks pinned against each other with the feeling that everyone else has a better deal. Unfortunately, I don't feel that there will ever be any unity to change the global market, the rich know how to prey on the lower classes, and the lower classes are too ignorant to stand up for the truth. We are simply to afraid that we can't change a thing, or simply apathetic.
  
  Sorry to get preachy, just always get a chuckle at the wage debate; felt I should state something at least. I plan on suckering those around me to buy me the $400 360 model for my 24th in Sept as I have blown enough money on those around me the last year. Couldn't care less anymore about a price drop, just want Gears of War and Halo 3. Don't feel the Wii or the PS3 have enough to offer yet.

  9.6.2007 21:22 #42

• ZippyDSM

  bicuspid
  thank you for putting into words my general feeling of the world market!

  9.6.2007 21:49 #43

• scott2k7

  all the best games are on 360 they rule

  10.6.2007 01:13 #44

• REAM

  Originally posted by bicuspid:Did I seriously just see someone from America just state the average wage is $32K a year!?! HAHA, I worked at a very "good" job as of last Wednesday at Blue Cross Blue Shield, worked there for almost 2 years, after raises I made $24.4K a year (with very high "world class" ranking).... That is a "Decent" wage if you look at the statistics of employment in many metropolitan areas anymore! I live in NY, 45 mins from NYC/Manhattan. EU prices are indeed hiked up, but the poor sections I have found do indeed even out to the poor sections of America anymore. I feel the world market is finally even, only sadly, it is highly(!!!) deceiving. The only way it is fair at all anymore is if you are upper-class. No difference between middle or lower class anymore, just schmucks pinned against each other with the feeling that everyone else has a better deal. Unfortunately, I don't feel that there will ever be any unity to change the global market, the rich know how to prey on the lower classes, and the lower classes are too ignorant to stand up for the truth. We are simply to afraid that we can't change a thing, or simply apathetic.
  
  Sorry to get preachy, just always get a chuckle at the wage debate; felt I should state something at least. I plan on suckering those around me to buy me the $400 360 model for my 24th in Sept as I have blown enough money on those around me the last year. Couldn't care less anymore about a price drop, just want Gears of War and Halo 3. Don't feel the Wii or the PS3 have enough to offer yet.
  if you have read correctly, then you would see that i said that is the minimum wage IN LONDON....so haveing jackup prices int he uk, dont mean jack, overl the uk earns much more than the US, thats why our currecy is half yours.
  
  xe.com says that the current exchange rate is £1=$1.96560

  10.6.2007 03:58 #45

• bicuspid

  I actually did not read it fully correct. My apologies. I mixed two posts together and mixed up my geography, haha. Read that late last night before I went to bed. And yeah, it all evens out like I was saying too. Just a scheme to pit the masses against each other I feel.

  10.6.2007 09:37 #46

• Unfocused

  This high price tag was the nail on the coffin for the 3DO and the Neo Geo home console. Sony should study their past and learn from the others mistakes.

  30.7.2007 20:55 #47

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by Unfocused: This high price tag was the nail on the coffin for the 3DO and the Neo Geo home console. Sony should study their past and learn from the others mistakes.
  they cant arrogance demands that they sale their console twice as much as others,I hope they get a reality shock theres a 50% chance the PS3 will go back up to 600.......
  

  
  
  FIGHT THE M.A.F.I.A.A.
  

  31.7.2007 10:59 #48