There are signs of a possible price drop on the Xbox 360. The Inquirer reports that: “Makro is advertising Premium Xbox 360 packs for only £199 – the previous price of Core machines, which come without the hard-drive/wireless pad.” Makro is a wholesaler in Great Britain.
While that is not proof in itself of a possible drop in price from Microsoft (it is only one retailer), the company has hinted at them. “I think every console in the world has had a price decrease sometime in the first few years. I don’t know whether we’ll have a price decrease in the first few years, and I don’t want to comment on that, but I will highlight for you that every console has had a price decrease in the first few years,” company CEO Steve Ballmer told The Seattle Times.
Another matter for Microsoft to deal with is the fact that their games division has never posted a full-year profit. Microsoft has lost money for every Xbox and Xbox 360 sold since the company entered the console realm in 2001. Reducing the price of the Xbox 360 would only worsen the company’s chances at reaching its goal of posting a profit. Aside from investor concerns with profit, Microsoft also faces the reality of competition from the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3.
