Microsoft sets Xbox 360 pricing at up to $399
Wed Aug 17, 2005 5:07 PM ET

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research) on Wednesday said its new Xbox 360 video game console would sell for as much as $399 in the United States, raising the financial stakes in a war with Sony Corp. as both companies ready new game machines.

Analysts widely expect a November launch of the software giant's new console, which will beat to market Sony's PlayStation 3 and a next-generation product from smaller rival Nintendo Co. Ltd.

Microsoft said it will sell two versions of its new Xbox 360 video game console in the United States, priced at $299 and $399.

The Xbox 360 package selling for $399 is Microsoft's most expensive yet. It will include components and accessories, including a wireless controller, a headset and a detachable hard drive that make the console "backward compatible" to allow users to play games for the original Xbox.

Certain sophisticated role-playing games may also need the hard drive to run.

The $299 offering is called the Xbox 360 Core System and includes a wired controller.

Analysts predicted that the $399 version would outsell its less expensive console cousin, priced at $299.

Price has not historically been a hurdle for hard-core gamers, who are expected to be the first buyers of the Xbox 360 and will want to use the console to play games they already own.

"By definition early adopters aren't price conscious," said Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Michael Pachter.

The new console will launch simultaneously in the U.S., Japan and Europe ahead of the holiday season, Microsoft said.

The Xbox 360 Core System will sell for 299 euros in Europe and 209 pounds in Britain. The higher-priced version would be 399 euros and 279 pounds, European home and entertainment head Chris Lewis told journalists at Europe's biggest computer games fair in Leipzig, Germany.

The company said it would unveil pricing for the Japanese market at the Tokyo Game Show next month.

COMING PRICE WAR

At its November 2001 U.S. debut, the price on the Xbox was $299. The following May, Microsoft slashed the price to $199.

The console now lists at $149. Wedbush Morgan's Pachter said Microsoft's Xbox 360 pricing gives the company room for price cuts should Sony price its PS3 competitively.

Analysts expect the PS3 to be priced at $399 or $499.

Sony's game unit boss Ken Kutaragi has not given pricing details for its much-anticipated game player, but has often hinted that its price will be high -- even going so far as to say that the company's aim is to make the PS3 so good that people would work overtime to buy it.

The PS3 and Nintendo's next-generation Revolution are due for release in 2006.

Sony still has two-thirds of the games console market with its PS2, which Microsoft partly ascribes to the fact it launched its first Xbox only a year after the launch of PS2 in 2000 -- a mistake it does not intend to repeat.

Microsoft has declined to give sales targets for the Xbox 360 or to say how many would be available at launch.

Thus far, Microsoft has sold about 22 million Xboxes -- giving the company around one-sixth of the installed base of games consoles globally.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArtic ... OFT-DC.XML

And I'm officially not getting one until at least next year after the price drop.

Yeah, that price is pretty steep.

It's been rumored that the Playstation 3 will list at around $465.

$399. Worth it.

If it does everything I've heard it's going to do.

I didn't even lift an eyebrow at $399. So what. It'll be worth it.

I'm surprised they didn't officially announce the $60 games. Or the likely more expensive (third party) peripherals due to Microsoft's new royalty structure which was outlined in their 360 liscensing agreement.

Nerd.

$399? Bahahahahahahahaha!

Get real.

For what, maybe two or three good games at launch?

The best time to buy it will be when Halo 3 comes out. That's when I'm going to get it. No need to spend the money right away if i can just play my Xbox because as pants said there will be only a few games out for the 360 when it's released.

From what I've heard, and read in the Seattle newspapers, this system will be more of a PC than a console. It's supposed to be extremely powerful and diversely capable.

it's supposed to take over your family room. video games, music, movies, and a ton of other stuff. they are trying to get those who aren't in the video game demographic to purchase it.

Xbox is making an assload of huge mistakes. Setting two price points is straight up dividing thier consumer base, and making the 20-gig HD $100? That's almost as moronic as Sony making thier 2-gig PSP memory stick $350, $100 more than the damn handheld. And worst of all making the 360 selectively backwards compatible? That's stupidity at it's best. If they payed any attention to what Sony and Nintendo have been doing, complete backwards compatibility, they'd have known that that's what people want, instead of reaming thier fanboys. Also, making the games for the 360 cost $60 goddamn dollars on average? Sure production costs, blah blah blah, but Jesus H. Christ, that's just crossing a line. This is why I never owned or will own an xbox. Suck it Microsoft.

As far as I understand it, the backwards compatibility issue comes from the difference in the video cards and manufaturers used in the XBOX and XBOX 360. I think they have to essentially patch all of the old XBOX games to make them work with the XBOX 360. So they are probably going to just do it with the more popular ones. I love backwards compatibility, but if worse comes to worse I'll just use the old XBOX. It would be nice to be able to shelf all those old controllers and that behemoth box.

As for the price, they can afford to make it that expensive. They have a year head start on Sony, and that is plenty of time for them to bring the price down. Plus they will have no trouble selling out the initial small batch of XBOX 360's before Christmas. They will still probably be losing money on the system, Microsoft still loses money on the XBOX console. 400 is a lot, plus buying a game or two, and at least another controller, you are looking at over 500 bucks.

As for lack of good games, there are a lot that I am excited about. Madden, Perfect Dark, and the new Morrowind should be out around launch. That should be plenty to keep me busy until Zelda comes out.

$465, are they nuts.

Isn't that the case with every launch ever?



Madden, probably.
Perfect Dark, possibly.
Morrowind, absolutley not.

Gears of War isn't a launch title either.

Two price points makes perfect sense. Pretty much every one that bought Xbox will spend the extra $100 so that they can play all of the old games on the 360. The people who are new to Xbox will opt for the $299 version because they won't care about backwards compatibility. The price for games is kind of steep, but it also costs more the produce these games.

I will be getting one when they come out.

I am not paying 300 dollars for a Nintendo.

The only Nintendo I'd pay any money for is the NES.

You all have computers. Buy a good video card and forget the XBOX.