Sony's strategy includes $300-400 PS3, pre-loaded content on PS3, and new portable video players

Just need to add in my fifth of a dime right quick.

Wow! This thread. People take this far too personally but my is it fun to watch!

Here's the skinny folks.

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Sony Playstation 3
==================
STRENGTHS
•The 'Sony' brandname.
(high familiarity because of a diverse array of products from music players, CD's, TV's to batteries in everything from supermarkets to pharmacies to department stores)
•Last Generation's Marketshare Champion.
(heads into next generation to continue where they left off with the PS2 & its massive volume of games)
•Media Center
(Sony continues trying to expand the experience of gaming adding in mediaplaying tools for music, movies, etc. & tries to get the jump on the tech trends by being the first with Blu-Ray technology. Not to mention HD capabilities)
•3rd Party Strength
(what made the PS1 champion & subsequently the PS2, Sony hopes for this crucial component to continue for the PS3. Those powerhouse franchises from Square, Capcom & the like as well as other various 3rd party offerings are what make Playstation what it is today)

WEAKNESSES
•What's New?
(there's a ho-hum feeling in the gaming audience lately & this feeling will increase over the coming years. Each previous generation brought something drastically different to the table but the spark is starting to fizzle out. A crash is on the horizon. If PS3 seems like nothing more than a mere update to the PS2, then that spells long term trouble for Sony & any hopes for a PS4)
•High Cost
(once you go much over $200 for a game system people get chafed. With high gas prices & a bumbling economy a high cost for entertainment may seem superfluous & some buyers may ignore the system. there are some who may say "I can go to a 'massage parlor' for $400!"—[to keep it clean])
•Gambling On A Tech Format Standard
(memories of the Betamax are still fresh & Sony's pull for Blu-Ray is in a 50/50 chance for gain or fail. if adopted as standard Sony gets the headstart. if NOT adopted Sony's stuck with a collector's item)
•King Of The Hill Syndrome
(once you're on top there's nowhere to go but down. you can either maintain your acme or tumble down the slopes to the anxious competition. Sony has to maintain their position and with X-Box 360 & Nintendo Revolution this may not be possible)

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Microsoft X-Box 360
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STRENGTHS
•Online Capability.
(X-Box Live helped create a distinct identity apart from Playstation that has given X-Box as edge. This edge will grow in the next generation as X-Box focuses more on the service)
•First Out The Gate.
(X-Box 360 gets to marinate in the minds of gamers over the holidays & in the first parts of 2006 giving it the 'golden one & only' status. this will help it increase its marketshare edge against Playstation)
•Name.
(X-BOX. Simplistic short abrupt 'X-otic' name makes it memorable in the minds of new potential gamers who've never played a game system before. Playstation was a strong name that denoted 'the place, the location where games are played' [a universal feel]. But it has too many syllables. The letter "X" is a letter used for many things & in many sayings. The word "Box" has easy common familiarity {sandbox, boxing, mailbox, cardboard box}. The "x" in "box" takes you back to the "X" at the beginning of the name. And like the letters "Q" & "Z", "X" has an exotic flavor in the English language due to its limited use. The brandname was meant to be highly memorable to stick in buyers' heads.)
•Has Something To Prove.
(Microsoft wants their gamesystem to take over Sony's market this generation. they seek to siphon away Sony's audience to theirs. to do this they seek to make themselves distinct from Sony so people will have a reason for buying their offering. this results in the lauding of their power & system capabilities as well as aggresive marketing tactics. high ambition will serve them well as they continue their erosion of Sony's market dominance)

WEAKNESSES
•Identity.
(X-Box STILL has problems when it comes creating a distinction between them & Sony when many games on their system are available on Playstation 2. If this trend continues X-Box 360 will end up looking like a 5th wheel in the long run. With the strength of the Halo franchise & Rare on their team as well as their strong online they have created some differences but it's not enough. X-Box will have to get more exclusivity in the gaming experience if it hopes to erode Sony)
•Bill Gates-A-Phobia.
(some people refuse to trust Microsoft for fear of monopoly & all that comes with it. no matter WHAT Microsoft is offering good or bad there are some who refuse to pay tribute to the world's richest man. When you see takes like "Micro$oft" & "M$" there's a big wall of distrust that could hinder X-Box 360's plans.)
•High Cost
(once again when you go over $200 for a gamesystem you're pushing it. yeah some will pony up but others will find it hard to part with those hard earned dollars for a gamesystem regardless of what you purport it to be. there are some who say "a woman better pop out of the gameslot for THAT price!"
•First Out The Gate.
(yes this is also a weakness. going first may lead you to being one-upped by the competition who took longer to display their goods. Short-term win, long-term loss. X-Box 360 better hope their technology stands the test of time or either that no one will care if it HAS been one-upped)
•What's New?
(once again like Sony but to a lesser extent. Still X-Box 360 has to convince the gaming public what's REALLY so special about what you're offering me? Graphics are not the key to success this time around. Photorealism is practically realized & the gamesystems of the future will eventually seem like nothing more than mere updates to the system they just had. Eventually that will wear a good portion of the gaming public down who may wander elsewhere with their entertainment dollars. If the NEXT-next gen X-Box 360-Spherical is to come about they have to address this problem soon)

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Nintendo Revolution
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STRENGTHS
•Heritage/History
(Nintendo will ALWAYS have its heritage to count on. The gaming masterpieces they put out over the decades have shaped the world of gaming time & time again. People have grown up with them & that is a substantial component of their success. Even for those who left the Nintendo house there's a soft spot in people's hearts for this company. This will pan out with gold in Nintendo's retro gaming smorgasbord)
•1st Party Power
(Unlike the other companies Nintendo is the only true one who can put out its OWN in-house games & make not only hits but classics with. And not just a few at that. That ability to create new franchises & superstars serves this company very well. The mascot power is not to be overlooked. Many a Happy Meal was sold due to an overgrown red-headed clown's face)
•Innovators/Standard Makers.
(many of the standards we see in the current gaming experience originated with Nintendo. Their ability to keep it fresh is what makes them truly the driving force behind this industry whether or not they are the market champion. With the Revolution they stand to do it once again by flipping the script on how games are played with the new Revolution controller. More than any other entertainment field gaming must stay innovative to survive.)
•Underdog/Dark Horse.
(the one-time dominator of the industry is now seen as an also-ran by many. Many skip mentioning them as a factor in the next-generation because they assume it's past last call for Nintendo. But they may have assumed wrong. Unlike the other companies Nintendo even in its reduced space in the market still stays comfortably in the black. Being overlooked has its advantages. It allows you to formulate strategies to upset your competitors away from the glare of the spotlight. For a company to lose so much position on marketshare but

Great post john Lucas, I have just one thing to say : Don't underestimate the Champion *Sony*, especially when the situation is dangerous as it seems for the next-gen war, the "Playstation" brand is more powerful than you think, et don't forget what the marketing machine of Sony can do...

My prediction (the obvious one) : Sony still on the top next gen in all the markets, followed by Nintendo in Japan, but Microsoft will be second in USA and Europe.

It's been publically stated by Microsoft and other online sources that the Xbox 360 harddrive will come pre-loaded with songs, movie/video clips, etc. to help showcase what the 360 can do.

Also, not everyones parents can afford...or see a need...to run out and get HDTV. Hey, I like it, but many see no need at this point and time. In fact when the PS3 is launched over half the U.S. will still not have HDTV. And just because the 360 or PS3 supports it, doesnt mean they will force the market to change. Most parents cannot see justifying to run out and buy an HDTV just because a game or movie can be played in high definition.

HD-DVD's are region free. And it stands, Blu-Ray isn't. I can't wait to see how long the PS3's load times will be w/o a hard drive. And the fact Sony has already stated they will not have an organized online factor, that they have cut some of the ethernet ports from the PS3, and that at this time there will be no hard drive....well...they are heading in the opposite direction.

One major factor about Blu-Ray that people keep forgetting. The average joe. The average joe still does not have an HDTV....and thus no need for Blu-Ray or HD-DVD, even if they have DVD, and can't see justifying spending the money to upgrade to HDTV or get a PS3 OR Xbox 360. To them it looks and works fine on their regular 27" flat screen.

I do not see the PS3 changing the standard. Why? The average joe will not switch out their DVD player to get a Blu-Ray player. Especially considering its been publically stated the discs will cost a few $ more than standard DVD's, and a Blu-Ray player will cost waaayyyy too much for most people. And most people will not buy a PS3 just to have Blu-Ray. The only reason the PS2 did well with DVD is because DVD was already being switched to as the standard. All it did was speed it up. At the time PS2 came out, Wal-Mart and other retailers were already switching to DVD. When PS3 comes out, Blu-Ray discs will be at a minimum...and its hard to say if retailers will fully support them and start switching to Blu-Ray as the standard...when most people within the last few years just started making the switch to DVD, and DVD is still the popular standard. And since you can't play Blu-Ray discs in a regular DVD player...this is proving to be a big gamble. Blu-Ray is too new, expensive, and unproven for most people to jump aboard on.

Realistically speaking, just because it's the PS3, does not mean it will change the standard. PS2 took advantage of something that was already there. PS3 is trying to push something most people have no need for and has never been proven...is incompatible with current DVD players, and could confuse the market. It might be great for PS3 fans...but the rest of the market (and the average joe) I feel will have a hard time adjusting...and may not adjust. Especially seeing as how HD-DVD CAN be played on current DVD players.

Let me know when the PSP actually has games. They have seriously overkilled the movie side of it.

a spooky let me know when xbox 360 gets some next gen graphics.

""Why would someone want to pay $1.99 per download of one TV series episode on a closed system like a video iPod when they can transfer all the content they want from their own devices like DVRs to our multimedia portable player at no extra cost? Consumers already can do this with the PlayStation Portable," Stringer said."

errr, and the UMD format is?!? i wonder what all those peeps making UMDs of their movies will make of Stringer's comments...

For PS3 the Blu-Ray disk will sell millions just because content will be released on it and it will be cheaper to get a PS3 than to get a XBox360 and a Blu-Ray player. Expect this market trend to emerge Q3/Q4 2006 onwards.

The Revolution will sell on its novel controller until the other next gen systems starts making a similar technology available.

Sony has a *lot* of movie titles, so it will be quite a possibility to bundle a couple of at-that-point current releases with the PS3 - and most probably a then-hot-current-release in Blu-Ray video with all the super fangled high-res to show off the technology.

It is a winning recipe - it will sell a *lot* of PS3's. With all major studios now backing the Blu-Ray it is lear that it is becoming the de-facto next-gen medium. As for downloading content? Not in the next gen for the very high-res titles as a norm.

MS obviously will not support Blu-Ray because it will strenthen Sony. Expect MS to make some attempt to create a media format for the next next-gen to gain the upper ground. Same as they try with Windows Media rather than to support MPEG4 video and MP3 audio. Quite a case of not-invented-here that they are suffering from. Blu-Ray will be the 360's undoing. It will not be apparent in the first year - but from middle 2007 onwards it will become clear that they could have added a couple more % sales if they supported it. But they had to go with the opposition HD-DVD just out of spite - and now the HD-DVD train seems to be losing its way - expect MS to eventually announce support for Blu-Ray when 3rd parties start offering Blu-Ray for 360. The combination will still be more than the PS3 - and then Ms might decide to add it as the default medium for the 360 - but will not be able to capitilize on it becasue of the installed base of older DVD drives. This will come back to bite them.

#6 What is this console offering me that should make me buy it over a 360?

its simple...a true next gen platform.

http://www.mc.com/products/view/index.cfm?id=64&type=boards

Most notable numbers are of course the fact that they are using a 3.0Ghz Cell processor that performs at a rate of 194Gflops during the single precision SPU arrays. With even higher short integer numbers.

So, those Sony numbers were not far off at all.

all your getting is a small notch above a alienware area51. and you must not have played the xbox360...its no good at all graphic wise anyway. the only reason it appears to have some what of graphics is the $5000 lcd they have it running on. which half of you out there will not have ur 360 plugged into. and how can u make a judgement about the ps3? have you seen anything? and dont hate b/c they arnt showing anything..why show something when they dont have to. go out and buy ur 360 they want you too so u can see for yourself that its a rip..well not a rip your gettin an expensive computer for cheap. the ps3's guts are next gen every piece inside of it. and i do not think people understand cell's capabilities. but come december or january you will see. i guess thats enough bashin on the poor ol xbox for a while.

hahaha, i seriously dont care what the PS3 has to offer in technology, all i care about is getting it for MGS4, i have bought every other MGS game, and system for it, and have not been dissapointed yet, well other than the fact that some are shorter than they should be :[...

but yeah, im not going to pre-order or anything, but ill buy MGS4 when its on shelves, then a while later ill buy the PS3 :].

personally, i view the price to be great, but thats just me.

another thing is, i r to lazy to read, but does anyone know if its for sure going to be backwards compatible, at least with PS2 games, so i can play MGS3 on it ;].

sry, lol, kept sending me e-mails to confirm comment, and i was like WTF, I DID, so i accepted anyways, and made me ultra post :[

Facts:

1.) I have personally played the XBOX360 kiosk at Best Buy and Call of Duty 2 blew me away!

2.) I have a 53" HDTV without HDMI.

3.) The 360 comes out in 2-3 weeks, has a hard drive, wireless controller, a DVD remote, an XBOX Live Headset, and some preloaded content. Not to mention downloadables out right out of the box.

4.) Sony hasnt released the PS3 system specs officially.

5.) We have no idea how backwards compatible its Blu-Ray drive will be. There have been rumors it would be a 1x Blu-Ray drive and that it would not play DVD's. This is just a rumor though.

6.) PS3 currently has no price or any playable games, although some claim it will launch in Japan in March. It would be interesting if they could knock out a solid launch lineup in the next 4 or 5 months with no gameplay proof at all so far.

7.) Nintendo is one step closer to Hara-Kiri. Although to their credit, they are always profitable because they dont sell their systems for a loss. They will make a great 3rd party publisher one day, like Sega.

8.) Japanese developers are switching to the 360 due to development costs and because of the great development tools Microsoft provides them to work with. (for everyone bashing MS software proficiency)

9.) PS3 has a boomerang controller (Sponsored by Outback Steakhouse?)

10.) I am an admitted XBOX fanboy. Although everything I posted outside of the Nintendo jab was very factual.

The strategy Sony has was outlined in a
patent application they filed in the US
in 2001. Their strategy - and Im trying
to summarise an intense 30 page document
is to make the computer market better ,
games are a way to do that. I think they
are very clever indeed because the patent
of 2001 outlines that the internal ic can change with each new relatively free
operating system

This can start to be seen in the PSP with
operating systems released on purchased
software titles, unlike MS who charge a
lot for the operating system that then has to have new hardware to run it. Two totally
different approaches to computer and software
provision.

I much prefer Sonys approach as it
is far kinder to the environment - no more
replacing your PC every 2 years to keep
the latest Windows running.Unlike some
on this post I think Sony do have ethics
- you just have to know what they intend
doing, and realise the fierce competition
they work under and around.

The strategy Sony has was outlined in a
patent application they filed in the US
in 2001. Their strategy - and Im trying
to summarise an intense 30 page document
is to make the computer market better ,
games are a way to do that. I think they
are very clever indeed because the patent
of 2001 outlines that the internal ic can change with each new relatively free
operating system

This can start to be seen in the PSP with
operating systems released on purchased
software titles, unlike MS who charge a
lot for the operating system that then has to have new hardware to run it. Two totally
different approaches to computer and software
provision.

I much prefer Sonys approach as it
is far kinder to the environment - no more
replacing your PC every 2 years to keep
the latest Windows running.Unlike some
on this post I think Sony do have ethics
- you just have to know what they intend
doing, and realise the fierce competition
they work under and around.

#109 sony does not need to say anything. and why would i want an xbox 360 if everthing is old . there is nothing new about the 360 just more of the same.

I have preordered xbox 360 and I am peeing my pantaloons in anticipation of the ps3 in spite of the boomerang.Nintendo would have been a sweet ride too if it wasn't for that dumb-ass sci-fi controller thingywhatsit!? However,when all the bugs are finally out they should all be pretty cool toys!

I have preordered xbox 360 and I am peeing my pantaloons in anticipation of the ps3 in spite of the boomerang.Nintendo would have been a sweet ride too if it wasn't for that dumb-ass sci-fi controller thingywhatsit!? However,when all the bugs are finally out they should all be pretty cool toys!

It makes me cringe to read all this sony fanboy garbage, but i have to remind myself that i live in a society that allows free speech. After watching them be sucked in by the sony hypemonster, it continues to be shocking to hear all the statements they make to support their choice of consoles and then they lather on about how wonderful the games are and how sorry the xbox's games are. I have owned and played both and honestly cant see where they are coming from. I will continue to support Microsoft and its consoles since it is the machine that has the games that are significant to me. They can take their japanese rpgs and whatever else the japs come up with and jam em...

Here are missing points:

HDMI can output gigs and gigs of data along with sound, do the research.

People who think we dont need more space on discs, obviously do not understand how much space is required to hold HD quality data running at 1080p!!

Sony has not released official specs because they continue to improve them their already impressive specs, dont hate.

BluRay DOES spin 1x!!! however, 1x BluRay is equivalent to 2x DVD rom, which is equivalent to 9x CD-Rom, its all about streaming bandwith people! BluRay can stream GIGS

BluRay1 supports 36Gigs, by the time PS3 launches they'll use the next spec, 50Gigs perhaps. The point is, in its final spec BluRay can support 200Gigs!! But you wanna support old or inneficient formats?

Sony's gaming library IS bigger and better get over it! Even Xbox fans stubbornly know this!

Sony has built in WiFi, Xbox does not, fork 50$

Dont even get me started on graphics, I was not impressed by Tri-CORE 3.2GHtz and the rest of its specs, and whoever said they were blown away by CallofDuty, shame on you! I've seen PC gaming rigs with better frame rates and particle effects!

Playstation WILL look better, will have more features, capabilities, and it is a true media system, not an "Extender" it uses media ports, built in ripping functions.

If Sony uses linux core, it will spell doom for the competition, as linux developers will code an endless supply of software for the PS3 and to use its extreme power...

You guys talk from hype, not from an understanding of the small steps that are going to impact the life of the PS3.

OPINION: Any company that denies you a built in feature like DVD playback so you spend more money on their products is EVIL!

#118 finally someone who understands. and if you xbox people can't comprehend what he just said let me explain......ps3 will own 360 hands down.

I heard that the ps3 will be around 400 dollars. When the ps2 was released sony lost a huge amount of profit on just the system, but the get money in the long run from games and other media types. The xbox 360 is worth the price, but in one year their supposed to have a 100 dollar price drop. Putting the core system at a low 200 dollars. Sony will need to have its system priced at a loss to end up on top in the end. Either way though the hardcore gamer will buy both systems. Each for specific reasons. The revolution just might bring nintendo ahead. Most likely being priced low, and being able to play classic nes games may prevent nintendo from going the way of sega with consoles. Way I see it what ever floats your boat.

I heard that the first blu-ray player cost $1000+, I know that someone posted that an hd-player costed a $1000 but but there are now multiple competing formats. Since, there's less than a year left for PS3, how is sony going to bring down the cost, can they really swallow a loss of $600+ a system. Remember while sony makes over 65 billion a year, I read that they make most of it off their entertainment sector right now, so thats music, movies and video games and they just made a huge mistake with that hidden root software on music cds. So...