One of the big questions surrounding the next-gen consoles that we have not yet answered is what the price of the systems will be. Logically, Sony and Microsoft look very much at each other so that they can market their own platform at a competitive price. But who is the first to step forward and announce the price of their system?
According to analyst Michael Pachter, Microsoft would have a wait-and-see attitude in that context, because they want to go below the price of the PlayStation 5. Even if it will cost money in the first instance. The analyst says this in one podcast set up by Geoff Keighley.
“From what I’ve seen, Sony’s gonna have to charge $ 500 for the PS5 and Microsoft has a big balance sheet”
“If they wanna cut the price by $ 100 – just price below [PS5] and subsidize the first 10 million [units] – they will. So, I think that they’re waiting to have Sony blink first and then they’ll reveal the price. Very likely $ 400. ”
Peter Moore, who used to work for Microsoft during the Xbox and Xbox 360, agrees with what Pachter says in the podcast.
Michael’s right; what both companies are going through right now [asking] “How much can we afford to lose in the first 12 to 18 months?” “What is our attach rate of software to hardware?” “What are we willing to do in year one, two and three to hit 10 million [units]? “”
Microsoft right now – the stock price, the market cap – everything’s flying for them. Does Satya [Nadella, Microsoft CEO] say, you know, “this is our opportunity right now, as we did with Xbox 360, let’s get in, let’s price it right”? “
Both parties are expected to sell their console at a loss due to a scarcity of components. They earn this back by selling games and accessories, but the question is of course how much loss they want to accept.
Microsoft also seems to be keen to position the Xbox Series X more attractive compared to the PlayStation 5. After all, Microsoft will want to prevent them, as with the Xbox One, from looking at a backlog quite quickly.
–
