Another expert gaming analyst has slammed Sony’s pricing policies and their new PSP Go handheld. He has described the new device which is set to be launched in Australia soon as a “rip-off”.
Another expert gaming analyst has slammed Sony’s pricing policies and their new PSP Go handheld. He has described the new device which is set to be launched in Australia soon as a “rip-off”.
He also claims that Sony is severely overcharging for the device in an effort to leave margin in the device for retailers who will not benefit from content purchases, as the device is designed to deliver content over a broadband network which Sony will control.
Expert gaming analyst Michael Patcher claims that Sony’s are deliberately overcharging for the device. When ChannelNews and SmartHouse exposed Sony’s price gouging practises earlier this year the CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Michael Ephraim threatened us with legal action. He also demanded that we pull down a “Price gouging” story that he claimed was misleading.
Then when we refused he wrote a letter black banning us from all Sony events and press releases.
Last week during the E3 Expo, Sony officially launched the PSP Go handheld, which removes the UMD drive, adds a slider design and is slimmer than previous models. Pachter adds that the current “slim” PSP-3000 is more expensive to build but sells for significantly less.
In a story on AfterDawn Patcher says “I’m sorry to say it, I don’t want to get bad fan mail from the Sony fanboys, but Sony is ripping off the consumer until they sell a couple of million,”.
AfterDawn also claims “Disc assembly for UMD costs more than 16GB of Flash does,” he notes. “So this new device doesn’t cost them as much to make as the PSP-3000 and they’ve jacked the price up USD 80. And if consumers don’t buy it then the price is going to come down. They’re making a lot more money on the PSP Go than the PSP-3000.”
Pachter also added that he expects digital delivery methods to become much more mainstream now that console makers are behind the move.
“PSP Go is a game changer for digital delivery and yet they’re still going to support the PSP-3000, they’ve got to keep the retailers happy.
“This year’s show is ‘packaged goods are going away’. Half of all gaming purchases ten years from now are going to be digital. You can see it coming for the first time ever, the console manufacturers is behind it,” he concluded.
The comments by Patcher follow similar comments by Chris Cotty DisplaySearch’s Director, for Small & Medium Displays. He claims, that when it launches on October 1 in the USA, the new Sony PSPgo which will retail for $250 is $80 more than the touch-enabled Nintendo DS.
Last week Sony Australia took a rare break from their normal price gouging practises when they launched a new 52″ LCD TV that was only $190 dearer than a similar model from Samsung.
When we initially exposed price gouging by Sony Computer Entertainment back in February 09 we revealed that the cost of an 80GB Sony Playstation at JB Hi Fi is $688.95, while at Best Buy in the USA it is selling for US$399. Based on today’s exchange rate, this equates to AU$595.
Michael Ephraim CEO of SCE said in reference to a recent comment article written by me titled “Why Sony Is Utterly Broken and Why a PS4 Is Needed Now” “I am fed up of Sony being bashed. We are not price gouging neither do we have regional codes in our software. I am calling in our lawyers as we are not in any way price gouging Australian consumers. This is misleading. We have to factor in exchange rates etc.”
SmartHouse initially did infer that regional coding prevented consumers from using software purchased in the USA, we were wrong and have removed the comment.
When asked why Sony had never made a profit from the PS3 he refused to answer the question.
When asked about how Sony were pushing the Blu-ray aspects of its PS3 as a selling point, yet Blu-ray players are coming down in price, or getting built into third party devices he said “So what that consumer’s can now buy a separate Blu ray player? What price do you think they will have to pay?”
