PlayStation 3 $500 - PSP $249 are possibilities (GS)

[Megadrive1988]

http://www.gamespot.com/news/2004/06/21/news_6101035.html

Sony sticker shock: $500 PlayStation 3, $249 PSP are possibilities

Revenues, sales, even price tags are on the rise as analysts address
the upcoming transition to next-gen machines.
In a year-end report that puts Leo Tolstoy to shame, industry analysts
Michael Pachter and Edward Woo of Wedbush Morgan Securities presented
the industry today with a 144-page tome of charts, theories,
prognostication, and predictions. Unlike Tolstoy, however, their book
has a happy ending.

Titled: The Definition of Insanity: Why The Next Console Cycle Will
Start Off With A Whimper, the analysts present an "in-depth look at
interactive entertainment software." And while many of the report's
data points were revealed in May, during a Pachter-hosted E3
Conference Program luncheon, most of the data is, in fact, new.

Probably the most exotic of the report's predictions was a reference
to Sony's PlayStation 2 update. The report suggests Sony is
considering adding PSX and TiVo-like functionality to the PlayStation
3. And if it does, the sticker price on the unit could climb as high
as $500. The report states: "We expect Sony to introduce its next
console with more functionality than its current console. We base this
conclusion on the introduction of the PSX, planned for late this year.
The PSX will include a Digital Video Recorder (similar to TiVo)
functionality; broadband Internet accessibility; wireless LAN
functionality; and DVD read-write functionality. These features add
approximately $500 per unit to the cost of production, resulting in an
expected launch price of around $700. By late 2006, we expect the cost
to include these features to decline to around $250, but speculate
that the next generation console, should it include these features,
could debut at $500. At this level, we believe that many consumers
will be alienated."

Other key findings include an industry-wide growth rate (of revenues)
of 10 percent per year through 2010 and a growth rate of 14.5 percent
in revenues for console and handheld software in the US for the next
three to four years.

The report also suggests US publishers will begin to see a significant
increase in sales of game software in Japan, and that software sales
will surpass domestic music sales (in revenues) over the next two
years. Of note on the hardware front, the analysts expect that due to
increasing multimedia functionality (DVD playback, high-def
capabilities, and Web access) that the percentage of households that
own at least one console will climb from 38 percent seen during the
32-/64-bit cycle to 52 percent during the ongoing 128-bit cycle.

On the PC front, the report isolates three titles that will act as key
market movers: Doom 3, The Sims 2, and Half-Life 2, and that PC sales
overall will be driven to "near record levels."

As well, the Wedbush analysts check in with their estimate of the PSP
launch price, pegging the hardware to sell at $249.99 and software to
retail for around $30.

Ultimately, it will be female gamers, the increased spending power of
"tween" gamers (8-to-14 year olds), and aging but committed gamers
introduced to interactive entertainment on the Atari 2600, for
example, that will fuel the continued and dramatic growth of the
industry.

The report's summary closes with the following brave prediction: "We
expect interactive entertainment to be the fastest growing
entertainment sector over the next five to 10 years. We forecast the
interactive entertainment industry to grow US software sales by
approximately 11.4 percent per year over the next three years. We
project book and music sales to grow less than 5 percent per year over
the next three years and we believe that box-office movie receipts
will grow in the 2-4 percent range over the same time period. Using
our projected growth rates, we forecast that the US interactive
entertainment industry in 2004 will continue to be larger than these
competing entertainment sectors (with the exception of the music
industry which we believe will be surpassed over the next three
years), becoming the largest of these major entertainment sectors
within the US."

 

[cthellis42]

Not that it mentioned a timeframe or anything... The PSX "added TiVo-like functionality to the PS2," so would I expect it's in the possibilities for PS3 somewhere? Of course. (Though they still need to fiddle with the PSX more to learn how to make it more functionally marketable.)

...or could they just be talking about something it would have provided it launches with a hard drive? (Or heck, just a hard-drive option, but with the capability built into the dashboard.) We can go right back to the question of multiple launch models or not, too...

Offhand, I'd like to see the comments they're basing things on, because to my knowledge they haven't said anything that isn't vague at its best.

On the $249 price point for the PSP, well... That's UNDER a lot of people's expectations right now. I rather think they'll be aiming in the $200-250 range somewhere, taking whatever hit they have to, to keep the device accessable. If the DS itself prices particularly high, though, they may kick things up more feeling they have breathing room.

 

[wazoo]

On the $249 price point for the PSP, well... That's UNDER a lot of people's expectations right now. I rather think they'll be aiming in the $200-250 range somewhere, taking whatever hit they have to, to keep the device accessable. If the DS itself prices particularly high, though, they may kick things up more feeling they have breathing room.

the DS will not be expensive. It is against Nintendo philosophy. sony on the opposite...

 

[Guden Oden]

The report suggests Sony is
considering adding PSX and TiVo-like functionality to the PlayStation
3.

...Based on what, exactly, solely the existence of PSX? Not buying it. Sony certainly hasn't even suggested anything such.

[/quote]These features add
approximately $500 per unit to the cost of production[/quote]

Bull. Maybe to the sticker price in the store, but cost of production, not even close.

during the ongoing 128-bit cycle.

Do these suits think the bittyness of consoles simply double for each gen? There were 128-bit components in the N64 (and there were 8-bit components too ). Next gen we'll be up to 1024 bits at least in some parts of the hardware.

Maybe such considerations are above the head of a non-technical type.

 

[rabidrabbit]

The launch price of PS2 was around €500 here, and I believe much of europe was about the same.
That is almost the same as $500.

 

[London Geezer]

The launch price of PS2 was around €500 here, and I believe much of europe was about the same.
That is almost the same as $500.

It's actually even more than $500. Euro is stronger than the dollar.

 

[hey69]

these prices sound normal actually .

 

[Jov]

The launch price of PS2 was around €500 here, and I believe much of europe was about the same.
That is almost the same as $500.

It's actually even more than $500. Euro is stronger than the dollar.

Was the Euro even in wide circulation then? I got my PS2 Nov 2000 and the official release of Euro was the start of 2002 wasn't it?

Anyway, it was $750 AU$ @ launch. Now don't go converting the currencies as it should be a ratio to the average weekly salary given all things are equal (cost of living etc). Thus I think the best launch price is either in the US (Canada) or Japan.

 

[Farid]

The PS2 launch price in France was 2990Fr (1$=~5.5fr)


...And a lot of people wanted it:

Virgin Megastore Champs Elysées... Midnight!!

And no thoses PS2 weren't freebies... the guys jumped on it, and paid it 550$.

 

[thop]

Freaks

 

[Jov]

The PS2 launch price in France was 2990Fr (1$=~5.5fr)


...And a lot of people wanted it:

Virgin Megastore Champs Elysées... Midnight!!

And no thoses PS2 weren't freebies... the guys jumped on it, and paid it 550$.

And most just marvelled at the thing for the next 6 months until an AAA title came out.

 

[hey69]

6 months?

 

[London Geezer]

I was happily playing TTT until real good games came out...

 

[Jov]

6 months?

Yeah, and the next 6 or so months in anticipation of the AAA title after the release in Japan.

 

[Jov]

I was happily playing TTT until real good games came out...

Some were, some weren't. I played TTT as well, but spent most of my time on Vagrant Story (with faster load and PS2 version AA ).

 

[rabidrabbit]

Oh, those were fun times.
I bought my PS2 at euro launch morning, was lucky to get mine without pre-ordering from my nearby supermarket that had 4 of them.
Bought the Gladiator DVD with it, and Tekken TAG.
Had to wait two weeks for the memory card.

Bought SSX and RRV a couple of weeks later. Those and PSOne FF9 and DVD's kept me happy for months.
I would say Tekken TAG and Madden 2001 were AAA titles (or at least AA), for the next one there was a long wait, but there were very good games released even before GT3.

 

[London Geezer]

Bought the Gladiator DVD with it, and Tekken TAG.

Oh my god! Me too!!!

 

[Jov]

Oh, those were fun times.
I bought my PS2 at euro launch morning, was lucky to get mine without pre-ordering from my nearby supermarket that had 4 of them.
Bought the Gladiator DVD with it, and Tekken TAG.
Had to wait two weeks for the memory card.

Bought SSX and RRV a couple of weeks later. Those and PSOne FF9 and DVD's kept me happy for months.
I would say Tekken TAG and Madden 2001 were AAA titles (or at least AA), for the next one there was a long wait, but there were very good games released even before GT3.

Yeah, it was fun times. There were some AAA-ish titles before GT3, but we're all influenced by today's standards and GT3 still stands up as an AAA title til this day.

 

[rabidrabbit]

Bought the Gladiator DVD with it, and Tekken TAG.

Oh my god! Me too!!!

Really!?!? Don't tell me your next DVD was Toy Story 2!!!!

 

[London Geezer]

Nope, the Matrix...