Xbox One Digital Game Prices Raised

[dreamcast210]

Somini said:

dreamcast210 said:
This is actually quite simple to understand. MS and Sony have to keep their retailers happy. To do so, not only should they have consoles to sell but games to sell, too. This draws people into the store where they might make other purchases not related to gaming.

So, by keeping the digital price slightly lower, equal, or slightly higher than the physical retail disc, this ensures people will still by the physical medium in the traditional way.

If the price was significantly lower, say 40%, physical purchases would drop drastically. And so would the retailer relationships set up by Sony and MS for over a decade or more. Why would retailers push to sell a console that can't generate extra income for the company over the course of 5-10 years?

You can point to the iPad and say this is a moot point, but that's really a computing device with multiple purposes. Also, a console sells to a household whereas a tablet could sell to each member of a family.

So much for a Digital only future then!! Pff this could be one of the reason why retailers don't like the Vita.

It will happen, just at a slower pace. Look at CD/MP3, Blu-Ray/HD Digital, Print Books/E-books. They all have gone this route with the pricing being pretty close for both mediums. It makes for a slower transition, but eventually it will happen and then pricing will get lower.

The savior in this, as it has been with books, will be the indie game developer. If they have the ability to price their games how they want, they can make an impact on the digital pricing of traditionally published digital games.