14 DAY TRIAL // The PlayStation 3 is the most powerful console of this current generation, costing Sony a lot of money to develop and to market. But while the platform has a lot of aces up its sleeve, from online functionality to a lot of exclusive games, most of the customers are still put off by its high price tag, ranging around $399.
However, though many people mandated for a price cut almost since the console was released, executives from the Japanese company reiterated time and time again that they had a business to maintain and that it couldn't break even with the development cost of the console if they charged less money for it. This strategy worked for some time now but, as voices asking for a price cut are becoming louder and louder, analysts are still wondering just what Sony is thinking.
In a pretty interesting investor call, the Sony Corporation CEO Nobuyuki Oneda made a very interesting statement, namely that the manufacturing costs of the PS3 dropped by “about 70 percent, roughly speaking.”
He also said that everything was on schedule and that Sony's strategy wouldn't be changed by anyone. “The cost reduction since we introduced the PS3 is very substantial and this is on schedule. We don’t disclose how much of the PS3, specifically the cost deduction was achieved during the past two years. But that is on schedule.”
Overall, this should be great news for the Japanese corporation, and should suggest that the PlayStation division will be breaking even soon enough, meaning that a price cut can be made without affecting the profits of the company very much. This statement should also throw some more fuel on the speculation fire regarding just when the Japanese corporation will make this oft-rumored price cut. Stay tuned for more details in the weeks to come.