Market acceptance of PS3 pricepoint article

[TheChefO]

http://www.gamedaily.com/features/?id=1024

It's an article which interviews store owners from multiple regions on the perceived purchase rate of ps3 this November. This is the first such article I've seen with actual testimonials instead of generalized viewpoints. Although I would have prefered a more thorough sampling range and specific quotes. If anyone knows of an article similar in nature please let me know or link below so we can get a better picture for what the market is out there.

 

[RancidLunchmeat]

I can't believe I wasted 2 minutes of my life reading that article.

So they talked to early adopters in markets where consumers have disposal income and came to the conclusion that those people are eagerly anticipating the PS3.

They talked to 'regular folks' in Colorado where most (sure, there are some very wealthy areas of Colorado but I get the idea they weren't in Vail) consumers don't have the same level of disposal income and those people found the PS3 to be priced ridiculously high.

They then come to the conclusion that their data from the Colorado sample is suspect and most likely reflects a poor sample due to questionable methodology that appears to actually be the same as used in their other two samples that don't they don't seem to question.

 

[pakotlar]

It seems like the folks from Colorado are echoing a popular sentiment. $600? Where's my 360. Of course some will pony up the cash, but I think Sony has turned a lot of heads toward Nintendo and Microsoft. When Dreamcast was battling PS2, I remember the Sony PR blitz. I also remember thinking: uhoh, Sega is going to sink, the PS2 is just too amazing. I had a different reaction this time around. I thought, after E3: I can't believe Sony dropped the ball this badly. It wasn't that it was a bad e3, it just wasn't as spectacular as the ps2 unveiling. It is nothing special compared to x360 outside of the larger HDD and blu-ray. But some of the steam behidn blu-ray is lost due to the format war, and x360 owners can purchase a hd-dvd accessory, and come out at a similar price point as the premium ps3 model. I'm not saying the inclusion of Blu-Ray isn't nice, because it is, but it is not as important as DVD was with PS2. And people have confidence in Microsoft due to the capital it is backign the x360 with. No one thinks that if they buy a 360 today that Microsoft will leave the scene before next gen. And live arcade is brilliant. And the content is getting there. Sony will have a tough time. I wouldn't call them the underdog quite yet, but it won't be easy. I don't have either system, and am waiting for PS3 launch to see what's what.

edit: Also, I think Sony is panicking with the PR branding the PS3 as a computer. I feel as if they are losing focus, and I have no faith in the head of the division Ken Kutaragi. I feel like Steve Ballmer and J.Allard know whats going on more than the heads at Sony. The x360, while not as good on the hardware side, is sending a clearer message to the consumer (imo of course).

 

[Titanio]

It seems like the folks from Colorado are echoing a popular sentiment. $600? Where's my 360.

The latest NPD doesn't exactly corroborate that perception. More like 'Where's my PS2'.

 

[Kryton]

It seems like the folks from Colorado are echoing a popular sentiment. $600? Where's my 360. Of course some will pony up the cash, but I think Sony has turned a lot of heads toward Nintendo and Microsoft. When Dreamcast was battling PS2, I remember the Sony PR blitz. I also remember thinking: uhoh, Sega is going to sink, the PS2 is just too amazing. I had a different reaction this time around. I thought, after E3: I can't believe Sony dropped the ball this badly. It wasn't that it was a bad e3, it just wasn't as spectacular as the ps2 unveiling. It is nothing special compared to x360 outside of the larger HDD and blu-ray. But some of the steam behidn blu-ray is lost due to the format war, and x360 owners can purchase a hd-dvd accessory, and come out at a similar price point as the premium ps3 model. I'm not saying the inclusion of Blu-Ray isn't nice, because it is, but it is not as important as DVD was with PS2. And people have confidence in Microsoft due to the capital it is backign the x360 with. No one thinks that if they buy a 360 today that Microsoft will leave the scene before next gen. And live arcade is brilliant. And the content is getting there. Sony will have a tough time. I wouldn't call them the underdog quite yet, but it won't be easy. I don't have either system, and am waiting for PS3 launch to see what's what.

edit: Also, I think Sony is panicking with the PR branding the PS3 as a computer. I feel as if they are losing focus, and I have no faith in the head of the division Ken Kutaragi. I feel like Steve Ballmer and J.Allard know whats going on more than the heads at Sony. The x360, while not as good on the hardware side, is sending a clearer message to the consumer (imo of course).

Kutaragi has always been nuts about the Playstation being a computer, nothing new there. What is new is the idea of selling later versions with upgraded disks/memory with more features BUT keeping game functionality constant. MS got shafted with the Xbox because they didn't do this and had to pay suppliers to continue to make out-dated parts (due to poor license terms). It seems sensible to just keep using whatever parts are 'commodity' when you build the box as they will be the cheapest and have what can be regarded a constant price factor.

The BluRay argument is the silliest one relating to the PS3. It doesn't matter who wins the format war if Sony have 30 million consoles on the market as it'll just be a proprietary (which it isn't yet everyone makes out that it is) format for games just like the GD-ROM and the GameCube disks. So, in worst case you have 30 million players for a hard to copy medium, in the best case you win a format war and have 30 million players supporting it. As a consumer the only way you lose in this battle is if BluRay doesn't become the dominant format for movie playing BUT you still have a games console.

As for the remark on MS pulling out: Sony are a big company too with a lot of capital. Personally, in the living room, I'd rather bank on Sony ventures than MS' (WebTV, Media Center, etc. etc.)

 

[rabidrabbit]

"It's just the hardcore people that have a problem with it. Core gamers are little bitches. They complain about everything because they're used to a certain standard of living, and whenever anyone dares to change it they complain. You don't see people stressing out about the prices of new cars, computers, or appliances nearly as much. The cost of living is going up. If you don't want a PS3, then don't buy one."

Well that was a statement that makes sense and summarises the reality well, and one that actually sounds like coming from a real person.

 

[sonyps35]

The latest NPD doesn't exactly corroborate that perception. More like 'Where's my PS2'.

Come on Titanio..it wasn't that bad

It was PS2-232,000 X360-221,000 in that latest NPD btw.

MS has only beaten Sony for the overall NPD lead like 4 or 5 months in history..April was one of those few (first time the 360 did it).

What amazes me is, 10 of the top twenty selling games last month (by revenue not units) were 360 by my count (the rest split among DS/PS2).

It's amazing that a 1.7 million userbase is so active to overtake a 30 million+userbase (granted, surely not anywhere close in overall software sales (or are they?)).

 

[Titanio]

Come on Titanio..it wasn't that bad

It was PS2-232,000 X360-221,000 in that latest NPD btw.

It's more the drop from April for 360 that is noteworthy. It was close to 300k last month, now it's just over 200k. PS2 conversely, saw an increase over April. I think a lot of people were expecting 360 to break 300k this month, and I think that expectation was reinforced after Sony announced the PS3 price. If there is a thought that the PS3 price will drive people out to buy 360s at this stage as suggested by pakotlar, well, that doesn't seem to be happening. 360 has only dropped off in fact.

It's amazing that a 1.7 million userbase is so active to overtake a 30 million+userbase (granted, surely not anywhere close in overall software sales (or are they?)).

You mean PS2 versus 360? Overall, as in lifetime to date? Of course not. Unless the 360 tie ratio is ~300:1

 

[Nesh]

Come on Titanio..it wasn't that bad

It was PS2-232,000 X360-221,000 in that latest NPD btw.

MS has only beaten Sony for the overall NPD lead like 4 or 5 months in history..April was one of those few (first time the 360 did it).

What amazes me is, 10 of the top twenty selling games last month (by revenue not units) were 360 by my count (the rest split among DS/PS2).

It's amazing that a 1.7 million userbase is so active to overtake a 30 million+userbase (granted, surely not anywhere close in overall software sales (or are they?)).

Units should be a better indication.

For starters PS2 is a 6 year old console, people crave for next gen.

But secondly and most importantly 360 games are being sold at a higher price.

Revenues arent a good indication at all

 

[hey69]

and more people buy the same game if there are not much game on a platform
if you have a platform like ps2 with hundreds and hundreds game.. its more difficult to sell of 1 game hunderdthousend pieces.

+ the pricepoint hyes

 

[scooby_dooby]

It's more the drop from April for 360 that is noteworthy. It was close to 300k last month, now it's just over 200k. PS2 conversely, saw an increase over April. I think a lot of people were expecting 360 to break 300k this month, and I think that expectation was reinforced after Sony announced the PS3 price. If there is a thought that the PS3 price will drive people out to buy 360s at this stage as suggested by pakotlar, well, that doesn't seem to be happening. 360 has only dropped off in fact.

It's just one month, lets not get carried away. If 360 is slowing down, it's an indication that the $400 pricepoint is too high, which is not good news for Sony anyways.

You mean PS2 versus 360? Overall, as in lifetime to date? Of course not. Unless the 360 tie ratio is ~300:1

No he means current sales, which he explicictly said. Man, you're worse than a politician sometimes.

 

[Moonblade]

It's just one month, lets not get carried away. If 360 is slowing down, it's an indication that the $400 pricepoint is too high, which is not good news for Sony anyways.

How can the assumption that people think xbox360 is not worth $400 be bad news for sony?

Not that I think your assumption is correct. Imo it would be better to assume 360 may be slowing down because MS needs more system sellers like GRAW and Oblivion or perhaps because gamers are saving their money for a PS3/Wii like titanio mentioned earlier.

 

[Titanio]

It's just one month, lets not get carried away. If 360 is slowing down, it's an indication that the $400 pricepoint is too high, which is not good news for Sony anyways.

I'm not getting carried away. My point is really only that the numbers don't speak for the claimed sentiment "$600? Where's my 360" post-E3.

And true, it could be indicative of general price-sensitivity if this turns into a trend. Certainly I'm surprised there doesn't seem to be more pent-up demand left post-shortages. We'll see how the market reacts to PS3.

No he means current sales, which he explicictly said. Man, you're worse than a politician sometimes.

Don't get your knickers in a twist - he didn't actually refer explicitly to 'current sales' in the bit I replied to. He simply said "overall software sales", and it didn't seem so obvious to this politician's post-wake-up-head this morning that such a description was limiting attention to the month's sales (!) My reply was just slightly sarcastic..I knew he meant something else, but what that was was not abundantly clear.

 

[zed]

if we have another couple of similar months it looks like the party is over for the xb360 sooner than i expected, theres plenty in the shops now but ppl aint buying them, i guess the main reason is lack of games.
will the ps3 suffer the same fate?
hard to say, though it does have the significant advantage of being able to play thousands of ps1/2 games at launch.
heres the gamespot article with some npd figures btw
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6152601.html

 

[scooby_dooby]

He simply said "overall software sales", and it didn't seem so obvious to this politician's post-wake-up-head this morning that such a description was limiting attention to the month's sales (!) My reply was just slightly sarcastic..I knew he meant something else, but what that was was not abundantly clear.

"What amazes me is, 10 of the top twenty selling games last month "

Pretty straightforward no?

 

[Tap In]

It's more the drop from April for 360 that is noteworthy. It was close to 300k last month, now it's just over 200k. PS2 conversely, saw an increase over April. I think a lot of people were expecting 360 to break 300k this month, and I think that expectation was reinforced after Sony announced the PS3 price. If there is a thought that the PS3 price will drive people out to buy 360s at this stage as suggested by pakotlar, well, that doesn't seem to be happening. 360 has only dropped off in fact.

it's MAY

$400 systems don't sell in May.

$129 systems sell in May.

nice try though.

 

[Titanio]

it's MAY

$400 systems don't sell in May.

Evidently (or at least perhaps not to an expected degree), and that's all my point is. The argument offered was "$600? Where's my 360." was a popular sentiment, and I disagreed based on the May NPD. So you agree with me.

I'm not drawing any more conclusions about the sales figures from May for 360, so you can stand down

 

[Tahir2]

Need new games...
Must have new games...
Games........

Seriously they are coming and Xbox360 is holding its own pretty well if you ask me... but you didn't ask me.

 

[Tap In]

...

I'm not drawing any more conclusions about the sales figures from May for 360, so you can stand down

I 've got my eye on you.

FTR, I think that the $600 price will be long gone by the time demand for it runs out so the price itself is not an issue of sales but of preceived demand at that price point. It makes no difference what the price is if you're selling as many as you can make anyway.

OTOH, I'm actualy starting to suspect that Wii may take a bigger share this gen than any of us expected

 

[Powderkeg]

The latest NPD doesn't exactly corroborate that perception. More like 'Where's my PS2'.

Which is a REALLY bad sign for the PS3 since people are obviously more interested in an obsolete system that's only $130 than they are a next-gen console. (That happens to be priced at $200 less than the PS3 is.)