This would be a pretty screwed up situation, but I've always taken things for a grain of salt short of a specific Press Release or Public Announcement (AKA: E3, GDC, TGS, etc.). Especially given Dave Karrakers retorts on the Official SCEA Blog.

One quick thing before I head to the show for the last day. I just wanted to clarify something. I’ve seen a lot of posts this morning related to the 60GB SKU and the comments by SCEE President David Reeves. As we announced this week, SCEA’s product offering in North America consists of a 80GB PS3 available in August and a 60GB PS3 available now for $499. We will have ample supplies of both models to meet the needs of consumers for the foreseeable future.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2007/07/13/another-e3-winding-down-plus-a...

Then Kaz comes out and says something on Mic in an interview, and now I'm even more confused. Can we get some clarification here? I'll be sending SCEA PR emails tommorow...

Good thing i never planned on buying any ps3s.

'Course the primary reason is that most of the good games for it are also on the xbox 360. The fact that i had to return 5 different ps2s for breaking certainly isn't helping. But stuff like this definately doesn't encourage people to buy sony.

JC
I think they should focus on getting brand back in power,lower the price,stop wasting time and money on 2ndry units,focus what you got into the 60GB get it 400 it might gain you early losses but as things are going games are leaving lil by lil and the system is becoming another media machine game console thats doomed to fail.

Of coarse if they keep ignoring the price issue its more likely the PS3 will become a niche console (like the Xbox was only it would be simi popular in Japan) console mostly due to lack a of 3rd party games) for a few years and only regain some its lost status in 010 or 011 when its libary finally builds up some.

gs2005
ya anyway you look at it sony is in for losses its better to take them head on and try and show devs its making headway on the system.

Zippy, considering they are taking the largest losses, it is ugly to be bleeding a pint and then being told to bleed several more. Of course, people would just say, they'll make up for it, but it obviously isn't that simple b/c of the research they blew away on that damn Cell chip. Then, the chip isn't cheap to produce, along with the blu-ray diodes it is already a huge loss. Meanwhile, MS is taking losses, but probably worse than Sony now due to the reliability.
Nintendo... they never take losses, they profit all the time with the exception of that cube.

I'll stand by a prediction that they'll turn the 80GB bundle into a standalone product with just the system (sans Motorstorm). Kaz is pretty damn arsed about pushing out 11m PS3s, so maybe he just feels he can make people by stagnating models by introducing a cheaper model to produce and stating the old model is discontinued and will be stuck with a higher SKU.

@Lemmur

You are so on the money.

I agree with the hand analogy though.

To sum it up: Sony is cutting the price of the item that they are discontinuing.

@Gray17

That is sensible, and a perfectly good news story. 'It's a sham' is not.

Just as a note, this just showed up on Yahoo!'s front page news.

http://videogames.yahoo.com/news-522734

@Randomd
You are foolish if you think that everything reported is truly a story. Often what's reported is what is sensational. But that's not really the point.

As to 'How is that a price cut?' I understand where you are trying to go, but you are stretching way too far... it is a price cut because a 60 GB PS3 used to cost $600 and now it costs $500, and the fact that they've stopped making it both hardly matters when there are months of supply and doesn't really matter at all when determining if there was a price cut.

You're 'it's an inventory reduction' line makes no sense. How are they reducing the inventory? By cutting the price. It feels like you're just splitting hairs in order to make this is an issue.

@Lemmur

Sure the 80GB version's price will likely drop eventually. What has people pissed off is that Sony announced a general price cut of the PS3; which turns out to be nothing more than a clearance sale on a discontinued model. It comes across as Sony lying, which tend to piss people off.

In any case, yes it is a story. If nothing else, it gives us an insight into what Sony's actual sales strategy is, and shows us how poor a job management is doing at presenting and implementing that strategy.

Is it me.. or is it just those who dislike Sony are trumpeting how this is a screwjob.. Wether it is the 360 and its RROD problem or Sony and its higher prices, ir the Wii being more of a kids/group gaming consol, it seems like the fanboys just latch onto the littlest things and gnash thier teeth with no intention other than to make others feel bad about thier chosen target consol..

Big deal.

Kotaku further confirms that the price reduction only affects a unit which has been discontinued. In fact, it seems Sony is only going to have a single model of PS3 going forward.

"We're no longer in production for [the 60GB PS3], so once that product is gone from the retailers shelves, then we're back to the $599 SKU only, so it's not like we have a two-price strategy here in the US market, which we found out very early on, that consumers react mostly to having one SKU as opposed to two."

http://kotaku.com/gaming/clustered-fucks/kaz-confirms-60gb-ps3-discontin...

@ Doug and Mike C

The thing is, Sony said they lowing the price of the console WITHOUT telling consumers that in actuality, they are just dropping the price on a model which has Already Been discontinued. They should have been straight with the public.

Here's the timeline"

1. Sony US (SCEA) announces a price reduction of the PS3.
2. Sony Europe says they'll not be reducing the price of their PS3s because the 60 GB unit has been discontinued and Europe doesn't have many in the warehouse.
3. Sony US is asked if this is true. Sony US gives answers which "seem" to contradict the statement of Sony Europe. But read closely, their statements are really just non-answer, answers.
4. Finally Sony US makes the statement I've reprinted below. They admit that Sony Europe was correct. That the price reduction only affects a unit that is no longer being manufactured, and that the price reduction is only on a unit which has effectively, already been discontinued.

The issue is, if Sony had announced this as a “while supplies last, inventory reduction” they wouldn't have egg on their face. But they didn't, they misled the public.

Sony's latest:

"The 60GB PS3 will be available in North America for $499 until supplies of that unit are depleted." ....

http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/13/sony-says-60gb-is-not-over-in-us/

"One quick thing before I head to the show for the last day. I just wanted to clarify something. I’ve seen a lot of posts this morning related to the 60GB SKU and the comments by SCEE President David Reeves. As we announced this week, SCEA’s product offering in North America consists of a 80GB PS3 available in August and a 60GB PS3 available now for $499. We will have ample supplies of both models to meet the needs of consumers for the foreseeable future."
~playstation's official blog, earlier this afternoon

Face it, Sony doesn't give a rat's butt about the consumer, as shown year after year.

$499 was still out of the range of the average consumer but it was at least a token effort on their part. If they go and pull something like this then they can forget my ever buying a console from them. Nintendo may have the cheapest thing on the market but I'm sure their image as a "family friendly" presence is a huge boon.

$400 would still be a "maybe" in my mind but it'd be a great show on Sony's part that they actually give a damn about being competitive in today's market. The limited backwards compatibility is still a huge issue in my mind. $300... now that would have me down to the store this weekend buying a PS3 instead of an X-box.

Sorry Sony, you've lost whatever magic you may have once held over me...

Throwing in a game you may or may not want and 30% more storage is not what consumers are asking for. What consumers Really want is a cheaper point of entry. A fully functional system for $399 would be a great start towards meeting consumer demand.

I think Microsoft was prepared to announce a price cut on the 360. And if Sony had announced a $399 model, Microsoft probably would have moved their price. But Sony cheaped out, so Microsoft didn't have to react. I don't think Microsoft will move their price until the cost reduced, 65NM unit is out this fall. Bully for them.

Yeah it'll save you zero dollars, oh well except for that extra 20 GBs.. oh yeah and the bundled game.. so yeah, you save zero dollars, and get more storage and a game for FRRRREEEEEEEE

I guess no one has considered that Sony's business plan is usually price things high then cut the costs with tiny slices over time.
Someone has mentioned that they just may do this to phase out the old models with the old chips, and when stock runs out they'll lower the price of the 80GB and probably bring out another one with a slightly bigger HDD.

From a business standpoint, it isn't a bad thing to do, as they lose less money from the 80GB compared to the 60GB due to parts. The 20GB cost them more to make than the 60Gb, and the 20GB and 60Gb were different in a few aspects that couldn't be upgraded. The 60GB and 80GB are different, and I believe the 80GB one comes with a game packed in or something, so it isn't just the 20GB you're getting shot at. It also creates a perceived value so they can clean out old stock and start bringing in new product with newer chips and at less cost to them, which is likely to have them pass the savings later. I don't see why some people are upset unless they really want a PS3.
Public opinions though, will state that they are using the bait and switch or will just try to lure customers into buying old stock.
I guess it is really horrible for consumers when they try to sell more of their product at less costs. /sarcasm
Until they make you sign contracts and fail on delivering what the system will do, then I see no point in bitching. It is your money if you want to buy it, if you want a price cut, just wait; nothing wrong with it.




Europe is always getting screwed when it comes to the gaming industry, and it may never change.

To clarify, straight from the mouth of Kaz:
"Well, again, just from a hardware perspective, the 499 dollar price adjustment that we did for the 60 GB version, for the American market, uh, we're no longer in production for that product, so uh once that product is gone from the retailer shelves, then we're back to the $599 SKU only.."

Can't get any confusion out of that. He states, clearly, "we're no longer in production for that product" and "once that product is gone from the retailer shelves, then we're back to the $599 SKU only.."

Are you or are you not discontinuing the 60g model? I can't take the confusion.

I have reason to believe that they are discontinuing it, but all the flip flop reporting is driving me Nuts.

GP save my sanity and please update this yourself and save us from getting late news from other sites.

http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6430&I...

Sony has stated that it will be phased out. This is the official word. They will stop supplying them to the US when the current supplies are exhausted.

UPDATE!

Sony won't be cutting production on the 60gig PS3

http://www.engadget.com/2007/07/13/sony-says-499-60gb-ps3-is-staying-ali...

Has Sony got any more mouths to insert their feet in?

http://atvs.vg.no/?id=10235

This is an interview with a Kaz Hirai from a Norwegian site. Kaz flat out says the 60GB is being discontinued once its done.

Sounds to me like SCEA doesn't have a clue as to what the hell is going on while SCEE and SCE do.

@ Zero Dash

Noone at Sony gets fired. They get promoted. How do you think Jack Tretton got where he is ;)

This wouldn't be the first time Sony has contradicted itself over statements by higher-ups.

SCEA aren't denying this as much as they are talking round the issue.

They do not specifically confirm that the 60gb unit will continue to be produced. Their entire comment only states that Sony US doesn't think they'll run out of 60gb units. Perhaps only because they've got more units backed up in their warehouses than Sony Europe.

SCEA's statement could also be read to mean that the US branch is shocked that the EU guys revealed a deception that Sony US was trying to conceal. Sony needs to learn that talking "around" problems is a great way to make people suspect the worst.

Bottom line:

If Sony is no longer manufacturing 60gb units, they've been very deceptive.

But if at any time in the future, consumers can no longer purchase an unbundled PS3 for $500 or less, then Sony are lying scum. Sony will have once again shot themselves in the foot. ... or maybe in the hand, they can't have any feet left.

i do like the extended coverage, but i feel like a sony misnomer isn't really core game politics material. Felt this way about some other recent articles too. Maybe there should be a non-politics section to the site? I'm just say'n...

"Studies have indicated that consumers only THINK they care about backwards compatibility, and once they actually have the new console and new games, seldom actually play the old ones on the new hardware. Sony may be hoping that the average consumer simply wouldn’t notice the difference."

What studies are those? The same ones that said a $600 console was going to sell?

Retro gaming is a big business. Sure, not as big as $60-$70 for a new game, but $5 for 20-year-old ROM dumps adds up and is pure profit.

PS2 games are a lot harder to emulate with software, and not exactly practical for downloading. If people are willing to shell out for Super Mario Bros on the Wii, chances are they'll still buy a budget-priced GTA Trilogy box for the PS2 if they can play it on the PS3.

The day the 60GB price was cut to $499, that model hit Amazon.com's "top sellers" list.

So, I think Sony has stumbled across an effective marketing plan.

Threaten to sell your consumers less product for more money, and they'll storm your gates.

well I know for a fact i WANT backwards compatibility. I move old systems into the bedroom or next to my computer if I don't need them. I have a lot of ps2 games that I wish to play on ps3. So I guess I'll either have to buy a ps3 now or take my chances on the software emulation that never works as well... Now they just killed my motivation to get a next-gen console. That is assuming this is all true.

Maybe this could be a mistake from Reeves (He is afterall head of the EUROPE branch of Sony computer entertainment).

My understanding is that the drives being used in the PS3 are Seagate Momentus, 5400 RPM, SATA, notebook drives. I did a little research and found, similar to what Koichan said, that the difference in price between the 60GB and 80GB drives is practically negligible. In fact, some retailers have the 80GB drive available for less than the 60GB.

So I'm still wondering what the extra $100 is for.
They're giving you a game, removing hardware functionality, and bumping the storage capacity by 20GB. Even if you consider the game's full price of $60, they're still charging you a premium of $2 per gigabyte for the extra storage while notebook drives can be purchased at less than $1 per gig at retail. Meanwhile, your new shiny 80GB PS3 is probably going to take a performance hit (though likely a small one) where backward compatibility is concerned due to the removal of hardware.

So this is their equivalent of a garage sale. I'm not suprised, given how low their console sales have been compared to the other guys:
http://www.vgchartz.com/

They're clearly desperate to sell all the units in their first batch, so they lower the price for them. It's the oldest sales trick in the book: Do anything, even sell your stock at a loss (or in Sony's case, a greater loss) so your sales look high enough to make it look like you've broken even. Again, not suprised.

Copy/Pasted from what i wrote on another forum:

"Sooo... an extra 20GB of space is worth $100? or am i missing something obvious?

Look on online shops for hard disks and you'll find the price difference between 60gb and 80gb notebook drives (the PS3 uses these right?) is virtually nothing.

Shouldn't sony be including 120GB drives for that money? At least then it'd be a noticeable difference... "

okay...this defeats the point, while i still cant afford a ps3 the price drop does make it look more appealing to a lot of people, and also isn't sony already losing loads on the ps3, won't this make it worse (im not sure how much 20 extra gigs would cost though)? also losing full backwards compatibility would destroy any reason for me to get it. hopefully it was misanswered and the price drope 60gb will stay, but if not it seems like sony is once again shooting themselves in the foot

I would better off be engrossed in PC gaming. These next-gen game consoles are too expensive for me.

Ugh... If the PS3 only has limited backwards capabilities.. it better drop in price by about $130. If I were to buy a ps3, I'd like to unhook my ps2 and replace it with a ps3 just like I did with ps1.

Then. Say good bye to the PS3 60GB model and welcome the 80GB model then. Is that so?

Oooooohhh what a stupid stupid idea...

Well GI.biz wasn't exactly clear in their question. Perhaps they should have got someone that knows how to ask questions clearly.

PS3...

Thanks for the compliment ?no one has ever told me that before!!...