Tuesday 27 June 2006
Microsoft has confirmed that it has no plans to drop the price of Xbox 360 this autumn, despite the imminent arrival of Sony's PlayStation 3.
John Porcaro, group manager of PR and communication for US Microsoft posted the following on his blog: "As you're all aware, there have been rumours of a price drop for Xbox 360 coming along later this year. The official word from folks in the know is that there are currently no plans for a price drop this fall."
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Many people believed Microsoft would drop the price of 360 around the time of the PS3 launch in order to tempt gamers away from the new console. But if the £425 price tag for PS3 is correct, then there's already a significant difference in price as 360 currently retails for £280.
Microsoft had to make some significant price cuts when it launched the original Xbox, as the £299 launch price was particularly high compared to the £169 for a PlayStation 2 at the time. Consequently, Xbox was made available for £130 only a year later which left Microsoft incurring considerable losses on each unit sold.
Now with Xbox 360 firmly established, it seems that Microsoft feels it can take on the competition of PS3 and Nintendo's Wii without having to make any drastic changes in pricing.
