http://www.indiemagazine.co.uk/cgi-bin/news.cgi?section=1&id=1558 said:
Software pricing information revealed…
“Unplugged gaming gets serious with PSP†was the message from Sony Computer Entertainment Europe’s president Chris Deering today, with crucial pricing for the software of the new handheld also unveiled.
Deering told attendees to the first Annual ELSPA Games Summit 2003 during his keynote address ‘Future Challenges for Console Platforms’, that games on the Universal Media Disc (UMD) for PSP would be priced, “as high as €50 or €60 no doubt, but probably the mass of games given the time slots these will be played in will be more the £20 range, €20-€30.â€
Deering also said films on the UMD would be slightly less than a DVD and music will hopefully be under €10.
Launch wise, Deering reiterated the second half of 2004 date, with every intent for this to be worldwide: “It’s technically possible,†he said, “but you can only make so many a day, so I would imagine it might be a slight time difference between the Japan launch and, U.S. and Europe. There’s no difference between PAL and NTSC, [although] there will be region codes for movies.â€
At the start of his address, Deering emphasised that PSP will not be a direct competitor to Game Boy or Game Boy Advance: “I think it can be in fact synergistic and dynamically collaborative with Game Boy,†he said. “Maybe it might compete with people on the planes, but in the school yard I don’t think people will be able to walk around with the PSP and treat it as roughly as you do with Game Boy. So it’s trying for a new part of the market to escape the TV, for the shorter leisure time slots that are seeming to be a factor.â€
These comments come following a Dow Jones report last week, with a statement from Nokia’s senior vice president of media entertainment Ilkka Raiskinen, saying N-Gage is targeting an older audience with its N-Gage: “Game Boy is for 10-year-olds. If you're 20 or 25 years old, it's probably not a good idea to draw a Game Boy out of your pocket on a Friday night in a public space,†he said.
