Sony Drops Price of PlayStation 2
Sony said Thursday that it would drop the price of the PlayStation 2 to $129.99 USD in an effort to keep consumer demand high as it races to complete its next generation console. The company plans to release the PlayStation 3 in November of this year.
To date, the electronics maker has sold some 101 million consoles and over a billion game titles. It also enjoys a 56 percent market share in the U.S., double that of its nearest competitor, Nintendo. It also remains the most popular platform in every major market, including North America, Europe and the PAL markets, and Japan and Asia.
"While we continue to innovate and design groundbreaking new products, we remain dedicated to our long-term vision for the PlayStation 2 platform," president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America Kaz Hirai said in a statement.
The PlayStation 3 will likely not be available in large quantities for the holiday season, giving Microsoft's Xbox 360 a distinct advantage. Thus, Sony may be lowering prices to stave off a push by Microsoft to gain some market share as a result of Sony's PS3 delay.
Sony plans a large marketing blitz to promote the new pricing structure for the console beginning April 27. Print ads will appear in Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, New York Times and Philadelphia Inquirer, with online ads beginning the same day on sites such as AOL.
Along with the drop in the PS2 price, Sony also dropped the price of the PlayStation Portable console to $199.99 USD in mid-March.