Sony could break even on PS3 in '09, finally get
agressive with pricing

post from Joystiq on 23 December 2008 05:45:00 PM. © Joystiq

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Business

Back in January, Sony Computer Entertainment president Kaz Hirai told Reuters that he'd very much like the company to turn a profit on PlayStation 3 in early 2009. Going by a new report on the actual manufacturing costs of the system, Hirai may get his wish.

BusinessWeek reports that the PS3 - which cost Sony a whopping $840 to produce in 2006 - has, through a reduction in parts and cost thereof, reached a price of $445 assembled. Sony was losing more than $200 per system sold back in the fall of '06 ... and it has now gotten that figure down to about $45. This was achievable by scaling back its inner-workings from 4,048 parts then to 2,820 today (losing backwards compatibility with PS2 games along the way). Also, the system's Cell processor, which cost Sony $89 at launch, is $46 now.

It's good news for Sony and its shareholders, who have been watching profits sink for some time. It's also good news for gamers; continued cost reduction on the hardware could spell a price drop on both SKUs by summer of 2009 - and potentially even more aggressive pricing this time next year. (Fun fact: although it might seem like the retail price of PS3 isn't dropping as fast as PS2, both systems dropped exactly $100 during their first 24 months on sale.)
[Via PS3 Fanboy]

Sony could break even on PS3 in '09, finally get agressive with pricing originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 23 Dec 2008 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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