Xbox to see £100 price slash throughout Europe!
Incredible Euro Xbox u-turn details inside. Plus: How Microsoft plans to reimburse launch buyers.
Microsoft Europe has announced that it will slash the price of the Xbox, from its £299 launch price to £199, the same retail price as market leader, Sony PlayStation 2, effective next Friday.
The move comes after disappointing sales in Europe and follows mounting pressure from games publishers, many of whom, including Acclaim and THQ, have publicly stated that the £299 price tag was putting off potential buyers.
The rest of Europe will be charged 299 Euros for the hardware set, a price due to be mirrored in Australia where the Xbox has again struggled to gain a foothold in the marketplace since launch.
Microsoft has stated that anyone who has already shelled out £299 for a machine in the last six weeks will be entitled to two free games and an extra controller, to be supplied direct by Microsoft.
Though this move will doubtlessly cause Microsoft great embarrassment, the company must be applauded for again reacting to public and industry opinion. The company has shed its bullish approach to the games market, and seems only too willing to listen to advice and pro-actively apply it.
Though nothing has been announced as yet, this move will almost definitely be mirrored in Japan, and possibly the US. Though US sales figures for Xbox are lagging behind those of the PlayStation 2, the machines carry the same price tag. Sony is scheduled (albeit unofficially at this point) to cut the price of the PlayStation 2 to $199, leaving the slow-selling Xbox as the most expensive machine available. Most analysts are predicting a cut of equal proportions to be announced for the US Xbox retail price, most likely at E3.
In Japan, a price rethink is now considered essential to ensure the survival of the Xbox brand in the territory. To be outsold by the Dreamcast and the PSone is clearly unacceptable.
The move comes after disappointing sales in Europe and follows mounting pressure from games publishers, many of whom, including Acclaim and THQ, have publicly stated that the £299 price tag was putting off potential buyers.
The rest of Europe will be charged 299 Euros for the hardware set, a price due to be mirrored in Australia where the Xbox has again struggled to gain a foothold in the marketplace since launch.
Microsoft has stated that anyone who has already shelled out £299 for a machine in the last six weeks will be entitled to two free games and an extra controller, to be supplied direct by Microsoft.
Though this move will doubtlessly cause Microsoft great embarrassment, the company must be applauded for again reacting to public and industry opinion. The company has shed its bullish approach to the games market, and seems only too willing to listen to advice and pro-actively apply it.
Though nothing has been announced as yet, this move will almost definitely be mirrored in Japan, and possibly the US. Though US sales figures for Xbox are lagging behind those of the PlayStation 2, the machines carry the same price tag. Sony is scheduled (albeit unofficially at this point) to cut the price of the PlayStation 2 to $199, leaving the slow-selling Xbox as the most expensive machine available. Most analysts are predicting a cut of equal proportions to be announced for the US Xbox retail price, most likely at E3.
In Japan, a price rethink is now considered essential to ensure the survival of the Xbox brand in the territory. To be outsold by the Dreamcast and the PSone is clearly unacceptable.
Companies:
Microsoft
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