VGKing said:
They will both lose money on the consoles. They will make that money back on subscription services like Playstation Plus and Xbox Live, plus accessories and games. |
No, it's not that easy. Sony is not in the position to lose billions of dollars right now. Microsoft can subsidize the next Xbox by a billion dollars a year if they want - they have the money, they are a very profitable company. Sony on the other hand is deep in the red, got its credit rating cut - where will they get that money from? They can't "make that money back" later if they don't have it in the first place and they'll have a hard time getting credits of this size at a small interest rate - and needs to downsize. The Sony of 2006 could afford that, the Sony of 2012 can't.
The Yen isn't helping either. Basically a strong Yen means if both Sony and Microsoft manufactured the exact same console right now Sony's bottom line would look a lot worse. If both consoles are equally powerful expect the PS3 to be more expensive - or to sell for the same price with Sony losing more money.
Do I like that? Hell no. I'm not exactly a fan of Microsft as a console maker because they can outspend other companies because of their sheer size. (I like their console as a gamer though) That's what happened to Nintendo during the Gamecube era - direct competition is all about resources, Nintendo had no chance to succeed going against Sony and Microsoft. Hence the Wii which is a disruptive product - it was made to avoid direct competition. If Sony wants to succeed in the future they'll need to avoid a head-to-head race with Microsoft. Instead they should focus on their assets - their exclusive games, their "retro" titles, stuff like SingStar and Buzz, use the plethora of game developers under their hood to produce high quality games with mass market appeal instead of having too many high budget releases. They'll need to find a new balance.
Not too long ago Sony was the driving force in the home console market not because of hardcore gamers or high-end hardware but mass market appeal and games that appealed to the average customer. A $300 PS4 with good-looking but not uber-expensive games is going to sell. A $500 PS4 with cutting-edge graphics and games with huge budgets... not. If Sony wants to get out this mess it needs to innovate its way out of it and not indulge in a useless head-to-head race with Microsoft. In an arms race the bigger not the better company wins. Instead of asking "what would make another PS3 sell?" (lose more money! Buy exclusives! Launch first!) Sony should ask themselves "what made the PS1 and PS2 such big hits?" The low sales and huge losses of the PS3 and 360 in their first years on the market were due to overshooting - the consoles being too fast, too expensive and too feature-heavy for the average customer. Customers wanted less. The answer to this can't be more overshooting in the next generation.
That was a pretty long reply, sorry for that. But I hope you understand I don't want Sony to fail, I want the to suceed. I'd just propose a different solution than most people on gaming forums, that's all.
