Well, we’re in the home stretch! A new format for E3 brought a new look and feel, a few challenges and most importantly a great opportunity to show off our wares for all PlayStation platforms. All the planning, preparations and hard work has paid off into what was a great E3 for SCEA. Congratulations to everyone involved in making that happen! And a thanks to all of you guys for your positive comments regarding the press conference and what we showed there. I know Jack was checking out all the comments on his post and really appreciated your feedback. I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing our games via the trailers on PlayStation Network. I just wanted to also let you know that yes, we hear you, and we are working to make those great games you saw into more interactive content and demos.
One quick thing before I head to the show for the last day. I just wanted to clarify something. I’ve seen a lot of posts this morning related to the 60GB SKU and the comments by SCEE President David Reeves. As we announced this week, SCEA’s product offering in North America consists of a 80GB PS3 available in August and a 60GB PS3 available now for $499. We will have ample supplies of both models to meet the needs of consumers for the foreseeable future.
Talk to you again soon, once we get back from Santa Monica.
@TwinsDad
He was referring to the different SKUs. If you read the whole line, he said they are offering the 80gb in August and the 60gb which is already available here in NA.
Let´s not forget that sadly, a big percentage of PS3 sales right now is also because of the BlueRay player.
People are buying it for that too. And as soon as the BR players price drop, there is another thing there are going to fight to.
I agree with some guy who post that HD-DVD is dead and that we have so many good things un our hands, but come on.
@TheHeartLessHero
There is nothing sweat about $500.
I also agree, once it’s gone, expect a model to place the 60GB at $500 (or less).
Thanks for clearing that up, Dave. Although, I knew you guys wouldn’t do anything that stupid anyway.
@derrickgotti007
You obviously don’t understand where I’m coming from. I have no problem with what I have. I’m concerned about the PS3’s success because the larger the installed base gets, the more return I’m going to get out of it.
Sony
I know you guys are very busy. But can you please answer only one question that I have for you. “Is the 60GB PS3 model still in production?” All you have to do is say yes or no. Thank you.
If Sony doesn’t absolutely fix this conspiracy, and if they are planning on leaving the new 80gig at $600, the consider all the ammunition they just got from E3 to be used in shooting themselves in the foot.
@105
I make your words mine.
this statement just pretty much confirms what the SCEE said anyway. SCEA has about a million 60GB PS3 to sell which should last them into the forseeable future.
if MS drops the price of the 360, you guys are going to have it pretty rough
I really hope that this isn’t just some clever execuspeak to keep the truth behind the curtain until you are ready to say “well, the foreseeable future is over, the ps3 is now 80gb and $599 only”.
If that is what happens, I believe that all of the ill will directed at Sony when this was originally “announced” will only be, to paraphrase what Reeves said, the slow burner before the tsunami. This last year has been pretty testing for even some die-hard Playstation owners. You had an awesome e3 with the price-cut announcement, and it made me even more secure with my launch-day purchase; but if this comes to pass as another example of how Sony has basically pulled one over on consumers, I know I won’t be the only person who loses a lot more faith and trust in this company.
@ Malpractice,
With the sale of the 60GB now @ $499, that will totally INCREASE the install base, attracting more developers, attracting better games, which will in turn add revenue to SONY, which will assist in a future price drop. So just be patient, it will all work out fine in the end. Just look, Amazon sales for the PS3 went up 2800% the day they announced the $499 SKU… that is just ONE retailer…that doesnt include Target, Walmart, Ebgames, Gamestop, GameCrazy, Hastings, Best Buy, Circuit City, etc….
See my point? And now after seeing whats going to come out for the PS3 after E3, that will boost sales too….
i think i’m gonna need some clarification on that “clarification”
just be a little more upfront about things, otherwise you’re pissing a lot of people off — people who have faith in your company and want to see the ps3 succeed.
People seem to be forgetting that NO MATTER HOW CHEAP THEY PRICE THE 360, THE THING WILL NOT LAST.
The 360 has a 70%-80% failure rate if you include the people that are on their 4th and 5th 360’s.
The PS3’s failure rate is less than 1%…..That speaks volumes for the level of design in the technology.
@ultrasur1
Spot on, just being honest will go a long way. Something they have trouble doing big time.
Ok Mr. Dave, explain to use loyal gamers how not only what Reeves said was untrue, but your own boss apparently is also a liar. Spin this…
Kaz Hirai CONFIRMS what Reeves said:
“[We do not] have a 2 SKU strategy in the US, we learned very quickly customers respond better to having one SKU than two.”
“We dropped the price on the 60GB model, as you know that model is no longer in production, once it’s no longer on store shelves it will just be the $600 SKU.”
http://atvs.vg.no/player/?id=10235
At the 1:40 mark.
From NexGenBiz: – “Nevertheless, Kaz Hirai himself says the one SKU strategy is the plan. He told Scandinavian website VGTV, “[We do not] have a 2 SKU strategy in the US, we learned very quickly customers respond better to having one SKU than two. We dropped the price on the 60GB model, as you know that model is no longer in production, once it’s no longer on store shelves it will just be the $600 SKU.”
Congratulations Sony, you’ve just made sure you’re screwed.
So I’m left with the flawed 360 or face the future of WiiFit.
Pathetic.
I [really] hope I’m wrong.
@ Ultrasur,
I know the pricing thing is confuseing, but if you really want a PS3, then get one now. If you already own one then this really shouldnt bother you as much….
I think Sony is really giving a great break with the $100 price cut in less than a YEAR!!! The PS2 didnt have that…and remember how much the PS2 cost at launch.
God Sony… it seems like you guys don’t know a thing about spin and damage control. The FIRST step of proper spin is always to admit you goofed!!! Then you go on to placating the customer with promise of change: i.e. $150 off 80gb from the $600 or maybe continued 60gb PRODUCTION at $500 pricepoint (FOLLOW THROUGH WITH IT THOUGH!!) In this case you haven’t admitted your horrible horrible mistake and now that video of Kaz Harai has surfaced. So… what are you going to do with this bomb in your hands now? (tip: read the above)
@derrick
The price drop did indeed do a lot for the PS3. It’s pretty obvious that pricing is where the problem is at. That’s why the idea that they would return to the $599 price is very disappointing.
Also, while the 360 failure rate is certainly unacceptable, it’s not 70%-80%. I’m fully confident that the PS3 is a much better machine, but the gap in price seems to be making more of a difference.
no demos on PSN from the show :(
thanks sony, the show was great In the future i will like to see more connectivity between ps3’s in your own home when you have multi systems in your house. because I will be getting another one.
I also have the 60gb version and I’m very happy with it but I think that Sony would be shooting itself in the foot if they didn’t keep the $499 price point regardless of what SKU they have there. As long as they don’t abandon that pricepoint for a higher pricepoint it really won’t bother me but the way it’s been stated is that the 60gb SKU will deminish and leave only the 80gb SKU which I will be fine with as long as there is a $499 price point still there after the 60gbSKU is gone.
The way it seems stated as of this time is that the 60GB SKU will no longer be available once stock is gone and that only the 80gb version will be left therefore nullifying the price drop to me
@TwinsDad
I in no way said it was a sweet spot to consumers. I said it was Sony’s sweet spot, the place they want the consoles to not go above on standard SKUs. I’m saying basically that as the same that happened with the 20/60 seems to be happening with the 60/80. The 20 phased out, the 60 going to its price point. Now if the 60 gets phased out, the 80gb SKU should go to its $499 price point as a non limited edition. There will be no one available SKU at one time from Sony anymore at a $599 price point. If so, it’d be suicide. I’d like to think Sony knows better then that by now.
Just save face Dave. Admit you guys screwed up and Reeves let the cat outta the bag with this one. You guys ahve ahd enough PR screw ups in the past due to your dectpive practices (just look at Tretton calling COD 4, Madde, etc PS3 “exclusives” during the gameplay montage at Tuesday’s conference).
I can appreciate your job requires you to spin this miscommunication. But face it, you are busted. Kaz will never admit he lied and go back on his word, neither will Reeves. And you can bet your pension that the press is all over this charade and will be fighting over who gets to ask Kaz the big question first: “So are you a blad faced liar or is SCEA PR completely making this stuff up?”
Out of concern for your job, I am asking you be up front with gamers for once and just admit that your “price drop” is nothing more than a clearance sale and once the units on NA shelves are gone, you won’t be shipping any more to that region of the world.
I am giving you a chance to look a bit less embarrassed when the news hits everywhere in a few hours and you have to put up with dozens of calls from magazines and news sites asking how you can deny what your boss and his peers have said in no uncertain terms.
Btw, I highly doubt Reeves will be happy to see how you have purposefully misconstrued his words. It is entirely clear what he said and it had nothing to do with SCEE or the market in PAL regions whatsoever.
You are trying too hard. Take the chance to save face and gain even a smidgen of your loyal fanbse’s trust back.
Sincerely,
-TGC
Alright, so with @115 and @116 I must say I am DONE with this.
I (WE) want a YES or NO. Is it still in production or the 500 price will raise again? I think the 600 price mark should be OFF the table from this day.
If the answer is NO. I am gonna sell my PS3. I had enough.
I don´t have problems if you say from the beginning that this is a marketing stuff to get your 60GB version out of your hands, but I CAN NOT take a LIE or HIDDEN INFO.
Kaz Hirai said that the PS3 60 gig models were being phased out, I hope that this blog isn’t just more smoke and mirrors.
Sony please don’t screw this up, let’s keep the 60 gigs for the whole 10 year span.
@ TheHeatlessHero
I agree with everything you said.
You know what? Why are you guys always talking about, “working on” what we want? Everytime I come to this blog, that’s what I see. “Working on it.” XMB acsess from in a game? “Working on it.” More demos on PSN? “Working on it.” Playing music in games? “Working on it.” Movie and TV show content? “Working on it.”
Stop “working on it” and start making it happen! I don’t want some big huge update where all of a sudden the things I want want are there. Do it in stages. Add the content to PSN. A few weeks later, update the firmware to give us one of the things we asked for. A month after that, do it again. A little later, do it again.
Don’t just tell us that you’re listening. SHOW US. The proof is in the pudding, gentlemen, and so far, I see nothing coming.
@malpractice,
It is indeed at 70-80% for the xbox 360…. The stats they gave for the 30% only counted 1st Time sales…Not refurbs.
I know personally of about 3 people that are on their 3rd refurb unit due to the red ring of death. Add in those people that are on their 11th! xbox 360 and you get 70%. But anyways onto the PS3.
Also, don’t forget that the price of the BLU-RAY Lasers went from $100 to $8 a pop, so that should also lower production costs which in turn is passed onto the consumers.
Sony’s only answer to the $599 80gb is to lower it once they sell the 1 Million Plus PS3’s that are in shipments to stores and on the shelves. Just be patient…
Sony knows the damage control they have to do, and they’ll do it.
It just takes time.
you people are amazing. By that I mean judgemental. I guess you all have degrees as market and financial analysts/advisors. Let Sony do what Sony does and us what we do; play and enjoy some great softwares. Who cares if the ps3 is 1000 dollars? Shut up. You have yours already. Go tell Bentley the phantom is too expensive.
thx for posting now im back to buying one at 499
Good stuff, now I want a ps3 even more. If thats even posible.
Clear this up on live television or something.We are still waiting for whats really going on.Please tell us.
@Blizzard…..
How does selling your PS3 affect anything? You already own a PS3, so how does a price cut affect you?? Just keep it or miss out on WARHAWK, or Little Big Planet, etc….
And give them time to answer this…Stop analyizing every word they say…People make mistakes…. Dave Karraker (Who wrote the post) said he was about to leave the hotel, so give him time to read this and comment on it BEFORE you sell your PS3)…good god man, relax.
@chacal81
Of course we’re judgemental, we’re the consumer, unless of course you like letting companies step all over you. I haven’t gotten a PS3 yet because I’m waiting for that magical price which the PS3 hasn’t reached yet. I was finally getting some good vibes this week and then this, clearly Sony has shown us with it’s latest antics that even with it’s professional market analysts it can’t do it’s thing without screwing up. So I say people who are complaining, KEEP COMPLAINING because if you just acquiesce then nothing is gonna happen.
What are you talking about?
*PS3 available in August and a 60GB PS3 available now for $499. We will have ample supplies of both models to meet the needs of consumers for the foreseeable future.*
(Ample Supplies?)We just want to know if the 60gb will be continued or discontinued.
Ample supplies = having the supply for a period of time.
So i guess we can just take it as it being discontinued then or what?
@derrickgott007
Yeah. Maybe you are right. But I had to work SO hard to get my PS3, thinking about the future.
If the base is not good, then the future is complicated.
I admit that it might be a quick decision but it is just that I am SO pissed off.
I can not understand why is this happening.
@Majimojo1985
He states right there Sony WILL have ample supplies of both models. The only concern in the statement is foreseeable future and needs of consumers. Because we don’t know Sony’s foreseeable future or what they THINK we need. However long their foreseeable future may be, he says that they’ll have what they think is ample supplies to us of both until that time.
I think you guys are did a great job at E3, but you’re still lacking when it comes to firmware udpates and PSN content. I would advise using this blog to announce why you’re not releasing Demos as quickly as your competitors and start giving some substantial updates.
PS1 games
PS3 Demos
Third Party Demos!
The longer you keep information, the more consumers and journalist lose faith in you.
@Sony
Since you’ve already alienated all the 20GB owners, then why do the same to the 60GB owners?
Your sales are soaring, because of this price cut on the 60GB, yet it just seems like your only clearing inventory; even though you say you have an ample supply.
The 60GB model is in the best position it could be in, but it seems only temporary?
The 80GB will only confuse/annoy people, just like the Xbox Elite.
I already bought a PS3 (on ebay, and the RSX messed up so I’m getting a replacement for 150 bucks, not too happy about that) so I’m sticking with my system… I’m not gonna sell my PS3, I waited too long to get it, and now that I know the $500 60 gig is only temporary (backed up by Kaz himself) the fact I ended up paying the old full price doesn’t matter as much…
What I will NOT be doing is defending Sony anymore… Not after this… This is a huge betrayal. You’ll sell, what? A million units like this? What happened to the user base you were supposed to create for your third party exclusives like MGS4? Down the drain.
Dropping the Emotion Engine and replacing it with 20 measly extra gigabytes of Hardrive space and a game is a piss-poor trade. Honestly, I’ve been one of the biggest Sony fans, even through the original 600 dollar pricepoint and through the loss of so many exclusives and everything else… But I want friends who will have PS3s with me… Guess what? I’m the only one in my circle of friends willing to pay 600 bucks for a PS3?
No, Sony has betrayed their fans for the last time. It’s gonna take something serious to reverse this… Like 150 dollar price drop on the 80 gig by the end of the year. For dropping EE when the US had it up till now, that’s what you need to do. 450 for an EE free PS3 is almost worth it. Either that, or you drop it 100, keep the bundle, and get that BC to 99% again. You better have your engineers working on this.
Sony disappoints me for this lying game
Nintendo disappoints me for abandoning hardcore gamers
Microsoft is the only one that doesn’t disappoint me… I always knew they were scum…
All three of the console companies are scum. Come on, Sony! Prove my support of you wasn’t worthless! Fix this gigantic mess!
If
and
=
(No communication)
Then
Execute (Mass Fear Uncertainty Doubt) Subroutine
Else
Execute (Clarify Promptly)
Don’t let it happen again!
Sorry chacal, but not all of us are stupid enough to support a company who has made it their undying legacy to be lie to tis consumers as often as they possibly can. There is a good reason Karraker’s predecessor couldn’t handle her job and left the company.
Sony does best at making themselves the butt of jokes across the internet. I don’t mind if the PS3 is too expensive, but I DO mind very god damn much when the company trying to peddle their console on me doesn’t lie at every breath to trick me into buying their console.
I sometimes questions whether anyone at Sony has a college education in any field with the moves they are making. They got caught lieing outright on theri fiscal reports to their own investors by claiming they had “shipped” 5.5mil units. Turns out “shipped” actually meant “manufactured”. They ended up left with 1.9mil PS3’s rotting in their internal warehouses waiting for the phone to ring with retailers ordering more.
Who wants to bet the reason Sony hasn’t put out their fiscal reports for Q2 yet has just a little something to do with them having an impossible time inventing new language definitions to use in hopes of tricking their investors again? That was the reason the Q1 fiscals got their 3 week delay after all.
When nothing but deception comes from a company that I ahve followed for a decade, they deserve to be ridiculed. If everyone went around patting them on the shoulder and telling critics to just relax and play games as you are doing, Sony would never get the message the industry is sending them.
People like you are why Reeves said they could sell 5mil consoels without any games. So far they haven’t sold that many to consumers worldwide.
Ouchies am confirmed Sony.
-TGC
@blizzard182
You may be pissed off now but at least wait to see what is really going on. Right now you are acting on assumptions and perhaps misquotes without knowing the full story behind what is said. Yes, I know what Kaz said but he wasn’t crystal clear as to what is definetively happening either. Wait until what happens happens then decide on wether or not it’s still something to be angry and sell your console for.
@blizzard182
I am right with you man, and I haven’t even purchased one. But it angers me to see Sony play around something so serious to gamers. I really can’t believe this is happening. Its like 9-11 happening again, out of no where it happened. What you said is so true, “if the base is not good, then the future is complicated”. People aren’t seeing that. So much talk about the 10 year cycle, that its hard to see that come about with all this going on.
@ Blizzard,
We have no one to blame but ourselves (Collective).
What have people done since day one? Complain about only having 60GB of storage, so Sony makes an 80GB model for the same price that I paid for my 60GB and the 80GB INCLUDES A GAME! Now that is a STEP UP from the 60gb if my math is right (Sarcasm lol).
People need to learn that they can rip out their HDD and put in a 250gb drive if they want, guess what?? YOu have a 250GB PS3 that SONY doesnt even sell!!! So stop asking for more storage space (everyone) and just take advantage of the price cut now while its in effect. (Collective Fence Sitters)
@Chacal81
I care if the PS3 is $1000. I care if the PS3 is $600!
I bought a PS3 because I’m obssessed with videogames. It’s been my hobby for as long as I remember, I’ve bought pretty much every major console. I love(d) the PS2, I loved the Xbox…but I also loved the Dreamcast and I see the PS3 going the same way unless they win some CUSTOMERS back, and for the time being that includes it being at an AFFORDABLE price.
Like I’ve mentioned before, if the PS3 fails this generation is screwed for people like me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m enjoying my 360, but they’ve pretty much owned up to the fact it’s going to break.
If the PS3 doesn’t sell, it’s going to be ignored by 3rd party devs, and therefore it’s ****ed. No future, kaput, finito.
So, yes. I’d like to see it available for an affordable price to the general public.
I buy consoles at launch because I’m a ****ing dork. Not everyone is, remember that. I don’t care how much they lower the price, they just have to do it.
@kenji
Exactly. All of this “hidden” information makes me lose faith.
I know that there are a lot of things that you can not say or control, but we are the customers.
One rule says that one pissed off customer is actually 20 pissed off customers.
And for the guy who said if we are all analyst I AM.
I work selling solutions for a bunch of software and I sell the customer what THEY NEED. There is no point of creating a bundle of software that the client does not need because they are going to run to the first seller who sells the same at a better price.
It would make a lot of sense (and fit everything everyone has said) if they sell out their 60GB inventory, add the “special bundle” 80GB, then when the 60GB runs out, release a “standalone” 80GB at the $499 price point. The “special bundle” was always meant to be temporary anyway.
That having been said, the current 60GB model is vastly superior to the 80GB model anyway because of the EE chip. I’d pay more for a 60gb/EE than I would for a 80GB/noEE. Dropping the EE without good software emulation is one of the biggest mistakes I’ve ever seen Sony make.