The Sony PS3 console is to get a serious price cut, with Sony announcing this “in the next couple of days”. The savings will come because Sony is introducing a version of the PS3 without its Blu-ray disc drive. At least, that’s what Mike Hickey, analyst at Janco Partners believes.
“We think the company needs to reduce the current price by $100 to effectively restart unit velocity at retail,” Hickey said in a research note quoted by Edge. “We believe the market is expecting a PS3 price cut in April or by June.” Hickey went on to point out that removing the Blu-ray drive would be one way for Sony to easily trim production costs. But this approach is unlikely.
Firstly, Sony has bet the farm on Blu-ray discs succeeding DVDs not just for games, but movies and other media. Sony’s consumer electronics arm is heavily invested in producing Blu-ray tech – it even wants hybrid Blu-ray movie/game discs. The Sony PS3 is the lever with which the company is trying to push Blu-ray acceptance onto consumers. So it’s unlikely Sony would want to allow consumers to opt out of Blu-ray adoption.
Secondly, the move would split Sony’s PS3 user base and cause huge manufacturing problems. All existing games would either remain unplayable on the new non-Blu-ray Sony PS3, or games publishers would need to bring out their entire back catalogue but now on DVD. Many large games, going forward, would need to come out on Blu-ray and DVD for the split Sony PS3 audience. It would, in short, be a far worse situation than Microsoft Xbox 360 gamers who do or don’t have a hard drive.
A Sony PS3 without a Blu-ray drive? It’s as likely to happen as Microsoft suddenly sticking a Blu-ray drive in its Xbox 360 console. Pigs might fly, Mr Hickey.
Sony PS3 out now | from £300 | Sony PS3
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