Following yesterday's comments by Sony France President, George Fornay, the company has officially stated that the prices mentioned are not relevant to the price of the PS3 but just an estimate by Mr. Fornay of how much the console should cost considering it will also playback Blu-Ray discs.
According to a Sony representative, the comments made by the Sony Europe Vice President, were meant to demonstrate how the PS3's price will balance the cost of owning a Blu-Ray player and a games console. To this end the prices mentioned during the Europe 1 interview indicate that the PS3 will be competitively priced when viewed as a Blu-Ray High Definition product but considerably more expensive than most video game consoles.
Mr Fornay explained that, with BD and HD functionality, PS3 at this price would be cheap for such functionality, but that current video games machines were significantly below this price, said SCEE corporate communications director Nick Sharples to Gameindustry.biz. At no time did he suggest or indicate a specific price point or price range for PS3, and any reports that he did so are incorrect. added Mr. Sharples.
This confusion about the PS3's price is almost irrelevant as we already know, from the Sony chief no less, that it will be a very expensive machine compared to other consoles. If the prices mentioned yesterday by Mr. Fornay (see next page of this news story) are any indication, then the USD 499 tag that we mentioned yesterday seems even more likely. Reports coming from publisher-owned developers that have received the updated development kits also mention briefings during which the USD 499 price point was confirmed as final.
We cannot argue that compared to the space shuttle the PS3 may be cheap and offer Blu-Ray playback to boot but as a game console it will be expensive and fans will be glad for the launch delay offered by Sony, as they may need it in order to raise the necessary cash. If Sony is taking a risk with Blu-ray it may also be taking another bigger one with its lead in the video gaming industry.
It appears that a European Sony exec has spilled the beans on pricing revealing that Sony's next-generation offering will sell at between 499 and 599 Euros. A quick currency conversion at today's rates would suggest that when PS3 launches in November it should retail at USD 613 to USD 736 although consoles are usually more expensive in Europe than they are in the U.S.
Speaking at France's Europe 1 radio, Sony Computer Entertainment France president and vice president of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, George Fornay, admitted that the price may seem high but added that the benefit of Blu-Ray playback justifies the premium. Mr. Fornay also confirmed Sony's plans for a global November 2006 launch for the Playstation 3.
Under the weight of this new evidence the notion that PS3 would have carried a similar price tag to XBox 360 comes crashing down and now the USD 499 price tag seems more likely although even that may be too low for Sony's new machine. If Sony does decide to sell the console for USD 499, that's USD 100 cheaper than in Europe, it will be by far the most expensive next-generation games machine available.
Compared to X360's USD 299 and 399 price tags, the new Sony machine will have to carry all the extras for that kind of money although the price range given suggests that the USD 499, or whatever low end price they choose, model will not come with the full assortment of bells and whistles.
It suddenly appears that Nintendo's policy to release a console for under USD 300 and to make sure games are also cheaper than the current excessive next-gen prices, is not all that foolish and may give the company an edge over its rivals.
