Sure we have heard rumors that a Sony PlayStation 3 price cut has been in the works for months now, but new “industry sources” are saying today that a $100 USD price cut is coming in August, right alongside the release of the sure-to-be blockbuster Madden NFL 2010.
“Industry sources indicate Sony is planning a $100 price cut on the PS3 in mid-August, just prior the launch of Madden (8/18) and the start of the back to school shopping season. This will naturally be a positive for the industry,” says Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia.
He also notes that the video game market, despite a recent downturn, is still doing great.
“While software sales for the first half of 2009 are expected to be down mid-single-digits, we believe the second half, in contrast, will likely be up 10 to 15 percent driven by a robust lineup, easier comparisons and potential price cut(s),” he concluded.
The rumor would coincide with recent comments by GameStop CEO Daniel DeMatteo, which says that a price cut is imminent in the Q3 2009.
Result for: downturn
According to new data from iSuppli, the HDTV maker Vizio has now become the leading North American LCD maker, taking the spot from Samsung.
For the Q1 2009 ended March 31st, the company’s market share jumped from 13.8 percent last quarter to 21.6 percent. Samsung’s market share only dropped slightly, but enough to move it to second place, at 19.9 percent.
iSuppli says Vizio’s success is directly related to the ongoing global recession. “Since the onset of the downturn, with budgets becoming increasingly tight, consumers are finding the company’s inexpensive sets more alluring,” iSuppli analyst Riddhi Patel added.
On average, 42-inch Vizio LCDs retail for $850 USD, while competitors such as Samsung and Sony sell theirs for $100-200 USD more.
Result for: downturn
Disney has announced that they have dropped the third Chronicles of Narnia film after deciding that co-producing and distributing the film, entitled “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader,” would prove too costly given the economic downturn.
The decision will leave the production company Walden Media on its own looking for a new partner to release the third film.
The new movie would have had a budget of over $200 million USD but its box office return was uncertain given the current climate and the diminished returns of the second movie in the franchise. The first film, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” grossed $745 million USD worldwide but its sequel, “Prince Caspian” only made $418 million worldwide.
For the time being, it is being reported that 20th Century Fox is a possibility to back the new movie, however they will require a tighter budget.
For a good opinion piece on why Disney is making a terrible mistake, read here: A ‘Chronicles of Narnia’ voyage Disney should take
