@bdbdbd

I'm merely pointing out that speculation is pointless and droning.....it's like banging your head into the wall.  It always starts arguments about shit that doesn't even exist.....this thread for instance....people are talking about and arguing over speculation.  Speculation is make believe.  One individual person decided it was thier undying duty to speculate that Sony has to discontinue the PS3.  Why even bring it up?  Are these idiots hoping that neurotic fanboys blow load upon load of retard juice in thier pants? Give me a break and talk about facts, not made up bullshit.  : )

1) Where do I blast NJ5?

2) This is just like all those blu ray threads, analysts change faster their opinion than changing underwear 'Blu Ray will be a succes' 'Blu ray is going to die soon' 'Blu Ray has no chance' 'Blu Ray is growing faster than dvd did' etc.

     It would be because for the first two years after the PS3 was released and even after games like Uncharted and MGS 4 came out, you kept seeing 360 fans writing on message boards, "The PS3 has no good games."  And influencing purchasers away from picking up the PS3 with their comments.  And now that they have it in their heads that the PS3 is finally doomed to failure, you hear them saying things like, "We are going to be getting Uncharted, God of War,and  Metal Gear Solid 4 on the 360."  So, if the PS3 happened to be discontinued and then 360 fans were saying on message boards, "YaY, we're finally getting all of the PS3's exclusives on the 360", then if the very next day after it was announced that the PS3 was being discontinued, that Apple was coming out with a console and all of Sony's exclusives were being shifted over to the Apple machine, it would be a good "f you" moment for all the 360 fans that had been putting down the PS3 and its games for so long, and then finally decided to clamor for the PS3's games when it was announced that the PS3 was being discontinued. 

@vthokiesrmoo: Only way we can predict the future, is to learn from the past. When we look at the past, you can clearly see that Wii is on track to become the big winner here. Wii is gaining 3rd party support, Wii has a couple of titles that have proven out to be real system sellers and Nintendo also has a number of well known franchises left that haven't been released along with a couple "evergreen" titles. Nintendo haven't even made a redesign, pricecut or anything similar for the Wii.
Now, the situation with the HD consoles is the opposite and i can guaratee, that the way Wii is heading, is really the winning key. So, there's nothing in sight, that would prove Wii momentum to go down.

Ok, so what games the PS2 owners could possibly be waiting? GTA? Singstar? Buzz? GT? Final Fantasy? The biggest selling 3rd party IP:s aren't exclusive and aside GT, the biggest selling 1st party IP:s are already out. Maybe they are waiting for a 199 PS3, which they'll have to wait for so long, that it's better to jump to PS4.
I was betting PS3 to beat 360 eventually, but due to Sonys current financials, i have to wait and see before passing new judgement.

@dolfan: How is it pointless? Some of us have grew in evinronment where people discuss about financials and market.

Ok, let's talk about facts; Sony is doing like shit at the moment. What do you have to say about the matter?

I think Sony will not even consider stepping out of the gaming industry.   

@bdbdbd: speculation does affect sales, not in the small pond that is vgchartz but in the big one that is that the casual consumer, no one is going to invest in a console if people speculate that there is a big possibility of it being discontinued.

Personally I can't see it being discontinued, too much investment has been put into the bluray and atm the PS3 is the biggest pusher of that format.

@Jazzy: I would say it effects all consumers throughout the market. And that's why FUD is invented.

Anyway, speculation effects both ways, positive and negative. If we look at the OP in this topic, it does have valid points why PS3 isn't going to be discontinued. In the end, speculating is only a way to try to guess what will happen next.

@bdbdbd: I absolutely agree with you, speculation can help stimulate a market and ofc the opposite, and yes the OP does make some valid points especially about the exchange rates and the decline in the PS2 sales that were helping to offset some of the losses currently made on the PS3. I do think his final paragraph was fishing a bit though.

I think the point that dolan1678 was trying to make is that they seems to be a lot of speculation from more negative points of views, wouldn't be so bad if they were all lumped together in a couple of threads.

@ bdbdbd

I disagree. The way i look at it the AAA exclusives out right now are great and deserve to be classified as system selling exclusives. The fact is, even with these exclusives, the PS3 has sold 20 million consoles to 22 million 360's sold since the PS3's launch. Is that because the exclusive games weren't good enough? I don't think so. It definitely had to do with 3rd party games looking better on the 360. But now thats a non-factor, so is it because some people just got their ps2 in 2006 or haven't upgraded to their HDTV yet? Maybe. Maybe its just people are waiting for certain software. I really think the price is less of an issue than most make it out to be. Your going to spend about half a grand when its all said and done for a new console and games. Who in the market for a new console frets about another 100 dollars if its the one they want?

I think in 2009 Sony's games for its console will really put the 360's to shame, and will truly be the wave of games that will push consumers towards wanting a PS3 (even if they already have a 360 or a Wii). Killzone 2, God of War 3, FFXIII Versus, DC Universe Online, White Knight Chronicles, MAG, Gran Tourismo 5, and Uncharted 2 are all system sellers. If I can get those games and get all of the big 3rd party games on one system I see it as a no brainer as to choosing between a 360 and a PS3. I guess we'll have to see what the US and the rest of the world will think.

And no you really can't tell the future of business from the past. You can maybe find trends, but nothing can be used to predict future sales or demand. Maybe one day the Wii will be exposed as a system that is more a novelty than is a gaming machine and people will give it the been there done that thought when it comes to waggling the Wii-Mote. Maybe by then we'll have a new Mario or Zelda or other games that say otherwise. Or maybe Sony's plans to bring 3d to PS3 (if you have a 120hz tv which are getting more and more affordable by the month) games will be awesome, and become a defining feature. Or maybe blu-ray starts to show its might, because you know Sony isn't going to put that in its consoles and not have its own projects underway to utilize blu-ray storage for games as a marketing stance for why the PS3 is best. Who knows. All i know is people shouldn't be saying this console race is over, by a long shot. I know none of the companies involved are naive enough to think so.

@ OP:Sony is not an integrated software/hardware company. They seem to act a lot like Microsoft who produces software. They probably wouldn't be very interested in making software when they have no hardware.

I expect Sony would cut software teams before killing the console.