Why Sony dropped the BC ???

[Dodece]

The writer of the article is both right and wrong. Sony could have seen to the backwards compatibility for a pittance in the grand scheme of things. Had they taken the appropriate measures. However the philosophy at Sony seems to have been one of stripping the machine rather then engineering solutions. The cost savings are more substantial then the cost of components.

The truth is no longer putting something in is much cheaper then developing an alternative. Sony actually kills many birds with one stone. They no longer pay for the original component. They no longer pay employees to install said component. They spend no money on development of an alternative. Which is more expensive in the short term. They no longer have to develop coding resources to compatibility. They even reduce system weight.

Removing the backwards compatibility responsible hardware. Actually reduces costs in many areas, and with no new development costs its almost like getting straight cash. So while a hardware alternative might cost under ten dollars. The net savings is probably far more substantial. They effectively reduce costs in so many areas by doing this.

The problem is that Sony is tinkering on the fly. Which makes cheap backwards compatibility a near impossibility. Further more Sony just does not have the time. Sure they could have done it if they had over a year to streamline the process, but they do not have that option. They had to produce a stripped down version for the holidays. That deferred the costs by a greater margin. Engineering a new hardware solution would have reduced those savings greatly.

The whole is greater then the sum of its parts. When you look at one part you ignore the fact that how that part gets there can actually be a expensive process in and of itself. The reality is that for Sony to do what the writer advocates Sony would have lost much of what it was striving to obtain. Which was cut every little cost you can.

Yes backwards compatibility is a luxury. Specifically for Sony not so much for the consumer. However it is a situation of lies within lies. The feature is not a true luxury it is a standard feature. You assume Sony is telling a lie, and then assume that your getting screwed out of quality for pennies. While that is not technically true it costs more then most appreciate. The deepest reality is that Sony could not afford to do backwards compatibility period, and make the price of the machine with the losses they could endure.

The deepest reality is this. Sony felt they needed to reach a specific price point on their console to generate sales. Which they desperately need, or forget it for this generation. They also couldn't afford to eat too much more in losses. Then they had to do it in a short time frame. The result is they ripped everything they could out of the machine. Fast, simple, cost effective. Then lie to the consumers. What is really being hidden is how seriously FUBAR their situation really is. Otherwise they would not be doing this in the first place.