Sony: No PS3 price cut plans

CFO Nobuyuki Oneda says Japanese electronics giant has no plans to counter Microsoft's $50 discounting of the Xbox 360 Pro.

Though Microsoft still hasn't made it official, every media outlet from Kotaku to the Wall Street Journal has confirmed that the Xbox 360 Pro will soon cost just $299. The move lops $50 off the price of the console and--once in effect--will make it just $50 more than the Nintendo Wii and $100 cheaper than the $399 40GB PlayStation 3.

In the past, such moves have sparked tit-for-tat price wars. In 2004, Microsoft dropped the cost of the original Xbox to $149, only to see Sony do the same to the PlayStation 2 weeks later. Last summer, Sony discontinued the 60GB PS3 by pricing it to sell at $499--a move that was quickly followed by Microsoft discounting its Xbox 360 models to $279 (HDD-less Arcade), $349 (20GB Pro), and $449 (120GB Elite).

Four months later, Sony introduced the $399 40GB PS3, a move that has put the PS3 and 360 neck-and-neck in sales ever since. Though the June US sales numbers are not yet out, many expect the introduction of the $499 80GB Metal Gear Solid 4 bundle to further boost the platform at retail.

So will Microsoft's latest move spark a response from Sony? No, according to Nobuyuki Oneda, the electronics giant's chief financial officer. "Our plan is not to reduce the price," the executive told the Nomura Asia Equity forum in Singapore, reports Dow Jones. "Our strategy is not to sell more quantity for PS3 but to concentrate on profitability."

Sony's emphasis on making the PS3 profitable has greatly lessened the console's drag on the company's finances. In an annual earnings report issued in May, Sony reported that the ¥124.5 billion ($1.1 billion) loss for its games division was down ¥107.8 billion ($954 million) from the previous year's record $2 billion loss.

690 Comments

  • amulbocus

    Posted Sep 3, 2008 10:10 am PT

    No one seems to mention the extinction of HD DVD, which is officially dead. This should also boost PS3 sales , as bluray is the only HD format available now, well done sony now you control the HD media world, its time to exploit it to the fullest. First thing to do is to get all those HD DVD exclusives, and ruthlessly release them on bluray.

  • Dookie105

    Posted Aug 24, 2008 12:24 pm PT

    Hmm Im very confused...I don't know if i should purchase the new upcoming 160 GB PS3 or buy the Metal Gear Solid bundle right now...

  • MURDA_B

    Posted Aug 22, 2008 6:40 pm PT

    OOOWWW BS NO PS3 PRICE CUTS MAYBE IF THEY DROP THE PS3 PRICE THEY MAKE A KILLING. I KNO A LOT PEOPLE WHO WANT A PS3 BUT THEY ARE 360 FANS AND JUST DON'T WANNA SUPPORT PS3.

  • AceCometh

    Posted Aug 4, 2008 12:00 pm PT

    A price cut on the Pro? It might be time to trade in my launch Premium system. It's worked well, but has surely seen better days, lol.

  • GrimBee

    Posted Jul 20, 2008 6:37 am PT

    This christmas I think that consumers will see the industry like this -

    Every consumer who wants a console will have between £100 and £400 to spend on a console.
    Look at it this way - which company offers more games/consoles within that price range?

    Of course, it is Nintendo. With the DS starting at £99 (WITH games in some stores) and the wii (bundled with wii sports) at £179.99, and then you add the games ontop of that too.

    The 360 has more price options for people with smaller budgets, but also a healthy software library for people with big budgets.

    The ps3 is for a very select audience (mostly people who know what they want from their console) and the market is pretty big for that now what with blu-ray sales ontop of games for the ps3. With the ps3 not having BC, it has made the potential market smaller for the ps3. Because now people will buy a ps2 for the smaller-budget consumer wanting the ps2 library of games.

    So in effect, every person who wants a console for christmas (or even now) will HAVE to have between £100 and £400.
    The DS will sell the most, no doubt about that, it is portable, big software library and all sorts of people buy a DS because of the variety of software on it. And starting at £100 you have a good gift, gadget, games machine etc.

    Next up, the Wii - its family oriented, it pleases the hardcore Nintendo fan and starting at £179.99 with wii sports its an attractive system. And with growing interest in its "non gaming" games like Wii Fit, it appeals to a larger group of people too.

    The trouble with this is that the prices then add up, with a wii remote costing about £30 and games up to £39.99 you will be paying around the price of a PS3 for a wii with some games. The consumer, imo, is just confused about all the choices. And the one with the clearer choices will sell the most.

    With the 360 price-dropping and having a large selection of games, the starting price will be cheap, and the added cost of more games will basically give you more for your money. Consumers will see this straight away.

    For example, a 360, gears of war 2 and perhaps another game or two will set you back around £250 around christmas time. Now thats a good deal on a console.
    At the moment, a ps3 with mgs4 and another game will set you back anywhere between £340 and £360.

    Consumers will not have many options with the ps3. Even though June sales have been high, when the market starts to flicker and show off bundles and price-tags - this is where consumer interest will spin right round.

    I mean, can you imagine if Nintendo had a Wii or DS price drop? You could pretty much rest your hat that it would completely smash the competition to pieces.

    The 360 price dropping will basically re-fresh the interest of the console, make it more appealing to the consumer and make buying a console a bit easier on the eye.

    I don't mean to sound like I don't think that the ps3 will sell well - it will sell extremely well indeed. I just think that Microsoft will cause a stir in the market with the price-drop. And word of mouth will help sales forward for the 360.

    With the 360 console price being lower - this means that your average consumer has more money to spend on games. So, this means that the 360 will probably sell more games. If the ps3 sells more consoles, the 360 will sell more games.

    Thats just what I see its going to be like this christmas anyways.

  • godzillavskong

    Posted Jul 19, 2008 10:42 pm PT

    They probably can't afford to. There is some amazing technology inside that black box, which I don't think has been really tapped into. The 360 is now showing what its capable of, and I think we will soon start to see what the PS3 can do. Especially with developers starting to develop from the ground up on PS3 and not port over from the 360. I'm waiting patiently to fire mine up on some killer apps like Killzone 2, Resistance 2, God of War3, and Infamous. Until then I'll be watching Blu-rays and playing my 360.

  • icym

    Posted Jul 19, 2008 6:22 pm PT

    I wish there was a PSP price cut...

  • ctburesch

    Posted Jul 18, 2008 4:42 pm PT

    it doesn't really need one.

  • lettuceman44

    Posted Jul 17, 2008 12:16 pm PT

    That sucks...

  • _Sam_

    Posted Jul 16, 2008 3:06 pm PT

    I just bought one, so good I didn't loose money

  • grambyte

    Posted Jul 16, 2008 3:23 am PT

    Lame...

  • trdrstv

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 3:51 pm PT

    "@Shraylo
    You know what's awesome? Buying a 60gig PS3 from Ebay for $290."

    SWEET DEAL! I got the 60 gig from the Sony store for $350 with the 5 (admittedly mostly crappy) movies when they discontinued them. People need to look for deals rather than passively wait until the damn thing is $100

  • kb8618

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 2:27 pm PT

    "ptown58

    So now what ? these companies need to stop lying to and deceiving its customers. $400 80gig is a price drop." Sry to be so harsh, but you should learn to listen. he clearly said 80gb CORE at 399 with the same features as the 40gb, meaning no BC and no flash card reader

  • kb8618

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 2:24 pm PT

    o there will be price cuts, the 40gb will get one, maybe not this month but when it get close to the 80gb core PS3 release it will have to, to get rid of the remaining 40s, and then the 80gb fully featured PS3 should also get one, because $100 for a card reader, backwards compatibility and 2 extra USB ports is to much, unless its always bundled with the newest games

  • ptown58

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 1:47 pm PT

    So now what ? these companies need to stop lying to and deceiving its customers. $400 80gig is a price drop.

  • Kenji_Masamune

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 9:44 am PT

    Sony better rethink this after loosing FF13 as exclusive. Now the only AAAA 3rd party game they have is MGS4 and the upcoming GOW 3. They got 2 hours to get ready to drop a bomb and appologize for fkn up once again (lost GTA, DMC, RE, SC, AC as exclusives)

  • Shraylo

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 9:19 am PT

    You know what's awesome? Buying a 60gig PS3 from Ebay for $290. Cheaper than XBOX 360, fully functional, and has all the features that are missing from both 40gig and 80gig. I laugh at you all waiting for price drops.

  • gamah_killah

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 7:57 am PT

    No surprise to me. The PS3 isn't selling at full price right now, anyways

  • Mr_duong

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 4:39 am PT

    no to mention live too - 1 year $50

  • Mr_duong

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 4:10 am PT

    my xbox 360 worth - $750 dollars including controllers and wires
    my ps3 is worth - $600 including controllers and wires

    360 = no wireless, no hd movie drive, no hdmi (old ones), no battery packs (old)

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