From GamesIndustry.biz, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe boss Dave Reeves states:
How concerned are you about possible criticisms that you should have given European consumers what SCEA has given US consumers, i.e. the option to pay a lower price?
Well, they're not really are they, because what the US are offering from the 1st of August is a USD 599 version with one game. All they're doing is taking their stock in trade that they've got at the moment of the 60GB model, marking the price down and it will all be gone by the end of July.
So once the 60GB is gone, that will be the end of the 60GB then?
In America, yes.
So the Internet blows up with this news. Sony Computer Entertainment America responds:
SCEA has denied 'inaccurate' reports that its $100 price cut on the 60Gig PS3 is simply a move to clear stock before offering solely the higher priced 80Gig version.
A spokesperson for Sony in the US told Next-Gen, “"As announced this week, SCEA's product offering in North America consists of a 80GB PS3 available in August at $599 and a 60GB PS3 available now for $499. We have will have ample supplies of both models to meet the needs of our consumers for the foreseeable future."
Officials at Sony Computer entertainment Europe – including president David Reeves – had said that the US price would still be $599 because that would be the only model on offer once 60Gig stocks ran out. If true, this would have rendered the $100 price cut a virtually pointless gesture, meaning that PS3 had not been cut in price, but was simply being offered with extra memory and a bundled game.
SCEA has reacted with puzzlement to the European perspective, suggesting that there may have been an incorrect interpretation. The spokesperson said, “Those quotes [published by a UK-based game industry website] from David Reeves are not accurate. He said that if they had lowered the price in Europe, that territory would have run out of their current inventory by the end of July.”
Previously, a senior PR at Sony in London had backed Reeves statement, confirming that he had been talking about the US market, though the PR later distanced London from the remarks, telling Next-Gen, “I believe that is the plan, but SCEA has not formally made an announcement on any timeframe. As it affects the US you should confirm with SCEA. ”
SCEA subsequently denied the story entirely. However, questions will now be raised about the company's long term plans for the 60Gig version and for its $599 / $499 pricing strategy.
Well, that goodwill lasted long. Chances are that when 60GB versions are all gone, the 80GB will go down to $499 and lose the packed-in game. After all, the 80GB is cheaper for Sony to produce, even if it doesn't run as many games as the hardware-emulation enabled 60GBs in stores right now.
Oh well. It could be worse. They could've made a PS3 that looked like this:
Seriously. I'm sure the game'll be great, if not able to live up to monumental hype. But that is the single ugliest game console since the Jaguar.
All they had to do was make it transluscent and more of a lime-green, and it would've looked awesome. Okay, so maybe not transluscent, because who wants to watch their processor pop off the motherboard?
But, c'mon. With decisions and screw-ups in management like these, it's no wonder Nintendo is pulling ahead even without much of a plan in place.
-K
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