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[spwolf]

This is their problem, though. Losing more money won't kill them, and with the way that business has typically done in this industry (console as loss leader) they can still be fine. They have several million people paying them $50/year for Live (the others can't boast anything comparable to this) and attach rates have been phenomenally good at times, which will only improve with more people buying the machine.

It might shatter their immediate plans, but so will this constant decline. I don't expect a miraculous revival for the PS3 but it has games coming and is doing a lot of things right (new features being added through firmware), and if Sony can shave off $100 first those plans will have to be shattered anyway.

you have screwed up take on corporations. All they are about is profits. when something is not profitable then it is an problem.

You think MS shareholders dont like making profits? That they like the fact that they lost few billions? How does that work?

Thats why both MS and Sony will hold as long as they can without price drops.

 

[Earthstrike]

Someone has an obvious agenda here.

$250 is better than $400 or $600.

Yet, all of those games on the list, besides Wii Play (controller + game) are all traditional games. Unless you're going to tell me than all of a sudden, Mario Party 8 and Pokemon are non-traditional games, proof of Nintendo's genius!

STFU.

No. It's JUST Wii Play and Wii Sports.

Yeah Its only 2, but these 2 games alone have a tremendous impact on sales. Yeah, 250$ is better, but when people present the issue as a blatant sales is proportional to price argument I need to state that their wrong.

 

[fly high ~ayunite~]

So have the hardcore Sony fans finally stopped making excuses.."Wait until next month...wait until Motorstorm etc" and accepted reality?

It's "Wait for Warhawk" on PS3forums last time I checked :lol

 

[Hollywood_mIRC]

Chart-age, we need updated charts/pie graphs

 

[michaeld]

That it will not come out on top like last time.

 

[909er]

So the Wii is still waiting for Wii Sports 2, then?

Yes, because everything follows the same trend, right? There is also the small fact that Wii Sports is packed in.

 

[Oblivion]

I hope Sony's press release is a bit more interesting this time.

 

[schuelma]

Hmmm, this is interesting. Japan sells what 75k a week roughly? So that's 300K a month. Na seems to be constant at what we can call 350k a month, And that leaves 350k a month for Europe. Seems reasonable, and given the nature of statistical deviation, seems entirely plausible.

Well for April, Wii only sold like 240K or something in Japan.

 

[FrankT]

I hate the lack of GBA and PSP numbers making me check that site. Though I found this post hilarious:

Well I do have to say those emails between ioi and NPD are something else. With him making them public like that I'm sure there is a bit of bad taste in the mouth atm.

 

[DeaconKnowledge]

Krusty is coming...Krusty is coming....

 

[Cosmozone]

Hmm, I really thought Wii would've done better last month. I had the strong perception that the console was more available in May than it was in April. Oh, well. The other numbers so far are nothing extraordinary, I guess (hang in there PS3!). PSP should've done well. And I'm kinda worried that Wii can't pile up enough units for holiday season and is going to be outsold by the more available Xbox.

 

[valkillmore]

So have the hardcore Sony fans finally stopped making excuses.."Wait until next month...wait until Motorstorm etc" and accepted reality?

Reality: PSP is the new lead for spin.

 

[schuelma]

For Worldwide, I have Wii about 1.5M behind 360. Takeover is imminent.

 

[Evlar]

E3 is a shadow of its former self and I see NO sense in waiting for that even to make a price announcement. If you're going to drop the price, Sony/MS, do it as soon as business realities make it possible. Contact the retailers, hammer out a deal, and put out a press release. Right now.

 

[Count Dookkake]

I'm sure there is a bit of bad taste in the mouth: atm.

fixed

 

[MightyHedgehog]

Time to drop the Core and go with two SKUs (three is FUBAR, two is confusing as it is) AND $100 price drops.

Agree, though the profit margin gets slimmer just relying on SKUs with HDD included (or maybe not so much anymore?). Elite, of course, is designed to fatten the profit margin to make up for the other two SKUs. **** it, MS. Take the plunge with first big marketing wave to ride it and watch as you double sales rate in West instantly. The increase in software and peripheral sales as well as the coming of their own big first party title (H3) will cover those losses pretty quick and regain some momentum. They'll probably see a **** ton of controller sales (and Live subs) go up thanks to H3, anyway. Forza 2 and Mass Effect round out their big sellers while they ride into GTAIV, Bioshock, Darkness, etc. Third parties would be even happier than they probably currently are with the X360 for software sales. I noticed that X360 is really nice to Activsion since the start. So that bodes well for GH3. Lots of good reasons to drop, MS. Let's see if you got the balls.

 

[AstroLad]

you have screwed up take on corporations. All they are about is profits. when something is not profitable then it is an problem.

You think MS shareholders dont like making profits? That they like the fact that they lost few billions? How does that work?

Thats why both MS and Sony will hold as long as they can without price drops.

If it hurts their prospects in the future, this might not be the smartest decision, though. It seems that both camps really do think like some of the more notorious fans here, "wait for Halo/FF/MGS/GTA," etc. They are getting demolished and even though 360 is getting most of the crap (from me included) because of the severely disappointing number, PS3 falls back even further. Really bad all around; hope those current profit margins are tasty because both companies are sacrificing a lot for them.

 

[Whipped Spartan]

The Wii has to be outpacing everything at this point in its life. I saw one on the shelf ever.

 

[reilo]

Agree, though the profit margin gets slimmer just relying on SKUs with HDD included (or maybe not so much anymore?). Elite, of course, is designed to fatten the profit margin to make up for the other two SKUs. **** it, MS. Take the plunge with first big marketing wave to ride it and watch as you double sales rate in West instantly. The increase in software and peripheral sales as well as the coming of their own big first party title (H3) will cover those losses pretty quick and regain some momentum. They'll probably see a **** ton of controller sales (and Live subs) go up thanks to H3, anyway. Forza 2 and Mass Effect round out their big sellers while they ride into GTAIV, Bioshock, Darkness, etc. Third parties would be even happier than they probably currently are with the X360 for software sales. I noticed that X360 is really nice to Activsion since the start. So that bodes well for GH3. Lots of good reasons to drop, MS. Let's see if you got the balls.

They got the balls. They don't have the brains. That's the problem.

 

[fly high ~ayunite~]

Nintendo are being slow with their PR...

 

[joesmokey]

I need to know if PS3 beat GBA this month or not!

 

[jetjevons]

What Nintendo know so well, and what MS and Sony seem to have forgot, is that no matter what the box can do most people think of videogame systems as toys. And there is a limit to what people will spend on a toy.

Sony and MS really need to drop the price. Like, yesterday.

 

[Cruceh]

It's "Wait for Warhawk" on PS3forums last time I checked :lol

Speaking of which, I wonder how they are taking this bit of news.

 

[Ulairi]

I have a feeling that Microsoft won't drop the price this year but simply just release some sort of limited edition Halo 3 bundled SKU around November and then drop the price early next year. Halo 3 will carry the 360 through the holiday and a price drop early next year will help keep momentum.

How many copies did Halo 2 sell during the holiday of 04? I don't think we'll see a spike in sales. Everyone who has a 360 is going to already get halo 2. I think you'll get the normal holiday spike for 360, but no silver bullet.

 

[VALIS]

PS3 is in huge trouble because they're in such a pricing hell right now. You're talking YEARS until it hits a mass market friendly price. $100 price drop right now will do nothing. $200 will at least make it competitive with the 360, but what a financial blow for Sony that would be.

And the 360 is also ****ed if they don't start stealing some momentum back from the waggle box before it's too late. They can either try to be the big dog this gen (at least in the US) with a $100 price drop BEFORE the holy mass market trifecta of Madden, Halo 3 and GTA, or just try to find some sort of middle ground between popularity and profit. I really hope they're not leaning towards the latter, but it looks like it.

 

[Sharp]

Wait, why the lack of real numbers? I wish sonycowboy wouldn't be so secretive about this sort of thing.

 

[Parch]

Perception is reality.

You do realize you're quoting Vince McMahon. Sometimes the gaming industry is a lot like pro wresting.

 

[Mrbob]

For a reality check against the first Xbox - this months sales - as bad as they are - are a full 25% better than Xbox 1 did at the same month in its lifecycle.

But is this what MS wants their goal to be, to sell 25 percent better than Xbox? That would be pretty bad.

MS needs to put the pedal to the metal now. As HD adoption rates increase, and lower PS3 prices abound, Blu Ray looks more and more enticing.

 

[USD]

Reposting from the last NPD thread:

Well somebody has to set things in motion. Microsoft seems content on waiting for Sony to make the first move, and Sony will probably wait until they don't need to ship any systems for a quarter or two because of oversupply, like they did with the PSP. Nintendo in the meantime, will laugh itself all the way to the bank.

 

[TheRipDizz]

So the Premium really is the new tard pack. It also seems like the PS3 bottomed out.

To those too lazy to read, the numbers are:

Wii: 338,000
360: 155,000
PS3: 81,000

I wonder if Microsoft has noticed that since the introduction of the Elite, they've sold nearly all of the 50,000 or so they've produced of them each month.........but their 200,000+ Premium sales each month have are getting halved. The Premium really did take on some of the "tard pack" perception. Great move Microsoft! One for the books! One to be proud of!

Someone needs a good kick in the nuts up there at Redmond. Glad to see the market is willing and able. Here's hoping the boot keeps kicking until either they are sterile or they fight back.

 

[DeaconKnowledge]

So have the hardcore Sony fans finally stopped making excuses.."Wait until next month...wait until Motorstorm etc" and accepted reality?

PS3 fans are like Bart Simpson huddled in a corner at Kamp Krusty.

"Krusty is coming...Krusty is coming...Krusty is coming..."

 

[AstroLad]

How many copies did Halo 2 sell during the holiday of 04? I don't think we'll see a spike in sales. Everyone who has a 360 is going to already get halo 2. I think you'll get the normal holiday spike for 360, but no silver bullet.

Halo 3 will move systems at any price. It's basically the definition of a system-seller. The question just becomes what are we even measuring those sales against. No one seems to think there is any chance of beating the Wii and beating the PS3 doesn't mean anything so they're just in this middle-ground. Modest success over lifetime FTW?

 

[KeithFranklin]

Holy shit at those numbers.
360 needs a price drop very soon, as most people said already Elite is a retarded decision. I don't know why Microsoft decided to release this SKU. They didn't learn anything from PS3's horrible sales and went in the same way sony did.

Dont get me wrong it is time to drop the price, but how can the Elite be considered retarded when you cant find one. People are buying them. Im thinking get rid of the premium. Drop the Core w/memory card to $199 and the Elite at $379. Elite is 2 good a value over the premium to keep both. Not to mention ship some.

 

[reilo]

You do realize you're quoting Vince McMahon. Sometimes the gaming industry is a lot like pro wresting.

Sometimes?

 

[GhaleonEB]

But is this what MS wants their goal to be, to sell 25 percent better than Xbox? That would be pretty bad.

MS needs to put the pedal to the metal now.

Oh, I agree. I was responding to the conversation about Halo. I think MS needs to cut the price and *now*.

 

[909er]

How many copies did Halo 2 sell during the holiday of 04? I don't think we'll see a spike in sales. Everyone who has a 360 is going to already get halo 2. I think you'll get the normal holiday spike for 360, but no silver bullet.

Ys, but the ppl that wanted Halo 2 wanted it cause of halo, which was on the same system, and logically, one would assume that many, if not most of those ppl, already had an Xbox. Thats not the case with the 360. So htats where the argument comes from. Whether its true or not we'll find out in a few monthes.

 

[Xavien]

Nintendo are being slow with their PR...

Do they really need PR at this point? The Numbers speak for themselves.

The Numbers say, Wii will be this generations market leader.

 

[LegendofJoe]

MS has practically saturated their potential market for a $400 system. Expect sales explosion at price drops and Halo 3/GTAIV.

No boubt, as soon as that sucker hits 299 I'm off to Best Buy. And I can almost guarantee you there are a crap load of others out there just like me.

 

[soundwave05]

I wonder if Microsoft has noticed that since the introduction of the Elite, they've sold nearly all of the 50,000 or so they've produced of them each month.........but their 200,000+ Premium sales each month have are getting halved. The Premium really did take on some of the "tard pack" perception. Great move Microsoft! One for the books! One to be proud of!

Someone needs a good kick in the nuts up there at Redmond. Glad to see the market is willing and able. Here's hoping the boot keeps kicking until either they are sterile or they fight back.

Yeah. The other thing that you have to think about is how many of these Elite buyers are actually first time 360 owners? I'd bet a fair share of them had a 360 before that they sold, or even perhaps are buying the Elite as a second 360.

I think what MS was thinking was even though PS3 sales are low, it has come in and taken a chunk out of the "high end console" segment, and they were trying to match up closer to the higher-end attributes of the PS3 and take those sales back.

 

[ShockingAlberto]

Krusty is coming...Krusty is coming....

Hail to thee, Kamp Sony,
By the numbers of N-P-D.
Though your execs are phony,
We know the other fans will see.
From your gleaming blu-ray,
To your hallowed game library,
Your spic n' span console record,
Is enough to keep me happy.
Hail to thee, Kamp Sony,
Below Mount Avalanche.
We will always love Kamp Sony,
A registered trademark of the Sony Corporation,
All rights reserved!

 

[MightyHedgehog]

Do they really need PR at this point? The Numbers speak for themselves.

The Numbers say, Wii will be this generations market leader.

Well, I'm sure the PR dept. is getting a little tired of spewing the same shit month after month... :lol Perhaps, they're taking a little more time out to be more creative with stating the same thing?

 

[jj984jj]

I need to know if PS3 beat GBA this month or not!

scb already told us it did.

 

[fly high ~ayunite~]

Do they really need PR at this point? The Numbers speak for themselves.

The Numbers say, Wii will be this generations market leader.

Yeah that's true but they usually throw in some numbers (GBA, software sales, etc) that aren't always published by other outlets.

 

[dkeane]

http://biz.gamedaily.com/industry/feature/?id=16507

SCEA's Sr. Director, Corporate Communications, Dave Karraker issued us the following statement: "According to NPD data, May 2007 showed a 27.5% increase in total retail dollars generated year-over-year by the PlayStation brand in North America with total sales of $284 million. During the month, sales of PS3 were flat at 81,604 units. PSP witnessed a 39% increase in year-over-year sales thanks in part to the April price drop to $169, as well as our new marketing efforts with the 'Dude Get Your Own' campaign. PSP unit sales for May totaled 221,120. The PS2 also continued to be a strong performer during the month with unit sales of 187,765."

 

[TDG]

They got the balls. They don't have the brains. That's the problem.

Actually, the problem is that they know that they don't need a price drop yet. They can sell a retarded amount of units at this price with their great holiday lineup, then cut the price next spring.

 

[schuelma]

http://biz.gamedaily.com/industry/feature/?id=16507

SCEA's Sr. Director, Corporate Communications, Dave Karraker issued us the following statement: "According to NPD data, May 2007 showed a 27.5% increase in total retail dollars generated year-over-year by the PlayStation brand in North America with total sales of $284 million. During the month, sales of PS3 were flat at 81,604 units. PSP witnessed a 39% increase in year-over-year sales thanks in part to the April price drop to $169, as well as our new marketing efforts with the 'Dude Get Your Own' campaign. PSP unit sales for May totaled 221,120. The PS2 also continued to be a strong performer during the month with unit sales of 187,765."

I know this is small small consolation...but perhaps this represents the low point of PS3 sales- possibly it stabilized this month. At the very least it reversed the downward trend.

 

[Sharp]

Nice numbers for PSP!

 

[jj984jj]

Holy Crap @ PSP over 200k, PSP making a comeback? I wonder if software sales is going up for it as well.

 

[Cheesemeister]

In summary...

[PS2] 187,765
[PSP] 221,120
[PS3] 81,604
[360] 155k
[NDS] 423k
[WII] 338k

 

[909er]

Actually, the problem is that they know that they don't need a price drop yet. They can sell a retarded amount of units at this price with their great holiday lineup, then cut the price next spring.

At this point, they have to realise that after 20 months with no price cut, there will be more and more ppl who decide to hold off because they think a price cut has to be coming soon. The longer they hold off, the more customers they will lose, and if they decide to go with an alternative system, they might lose those potential buyers forever.