While all three box manufacturers are stuck at $199 USD (while Japan, the EU, and Canada sell them for less) - one wonders when the game price competition will start?
My son said that two kids at school are waiting to buy xBox games when the price drops below $40 USD, since they have to use their own allowance money.
By my calculations, MSFT has to sell 10 games at $50 USD to break even on the price subsidy of the xBox. Nintendo still has a profit on both box and games, and Sony is just at breakeven due to manufacturing efficiencies on the 2.5 yo PS2 with clear profit on the games.
Right now they can't even keep the GameCube on the shelves in Europe or Japan, and are barely able to keep up with demand in the US.
Remember, they have the sweet spot. Their target audience is women and kids, both of which are major growth sectors, and the ports are flying off the shelves at the game dev shops for their machine. Plus they actually make money on each GameCube they sell, unlike PS2 or xBox.
Well, if they're losing $100 to $150 on the $300 xBox, and the price drops to $149, then you can really distort their metrics by buying 10 xBox, turning them into Linux boxen (or BSD perhaps), and hitting them where it hurts.
The xBox needed to sell 8-10 games to break even at the $300 price point. If they're down to $149, with no game sales (oh, c'mon, buy one Halo game if they bundle it for free), then you just hit the Evil Empire with a body blow of a few thousand dollars and got some nice hardware out of the deal...
That's $15 * 2 + $40 * 2 + $30 * 3 + $15 + $10 = $225, or a $75 profit on the sale of the XBox and attached games and peripherals.
However, MSFT actually loses between $150 and $200 per console, and based on actual purchases of peripherals and games, they would have to sell 10 games to get close to break even.
And they're not selling more than 2-3 titles per box.
Console manufacturers typically subsidize the cost of the console anywhere from 20-50%, so that it is affordable. They then make the money back on games
But Nintendo actually makes money on both the console and the games. Read the annual report if you don't believe me.
The only reason the xBox isn't dead yet is that Bill G has $40 billion in cash reserves.
Got a better feel for the story line and characters from their sparse tech-oriented pics for Episode II - not the one that has cutouts of ships and droids, but the one that shows all the characters and their cultural and tech artifacts.
It was only $10.99 at CostCo (caveat - I own stock in that store).
Seems to me that they might be open to Open Source as well. Especially since people get confused and mistake Seattle, the Emerald City of truth and light, for Redmond, where the Dark Lord dwells... ok, so he's really in an adjacent place, but it's still across the giant Lake Washington that's bigger than Seattle is.
There are some firms, Adobe for example, which are more than helpful in donating software and helping with tech problems - they have done a lot for B.F. Day public school in the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle where they're located. Microsoft seems to go between extremes - sometimes they're helpful, other times they're harmful.
To make a long story bearable... I managed to send mail on behalf of the president - to a legitimate address.
The whitehouse actually tracked it back to me (Not difficult as I was not trying to hide - just stupid).
Oh, c'mon, they always bring Krispy Kremes and coffee when they interrogate you. So long as you show them the id barcode on your neck, they usually let you go after a couple of hours...
If you don't buy a US distribution, you're supporting terrorism! Think of the children!
That's why I use Big Oil Linux. Then one (1) dollar of the two (2) dollars I spent on it thru cheapbytes goes to support terrorists who will attack the US real soon now.
I used to use Green Power Linux, but Bush showed me the error of my ways. Mind you, it was cheaper and made me a Real Patriot, but if King George says S.u.S.e. was made by Muslim terrorists, according to Mullah Ashcroft, I can't use that.
Good thing I no longer have the old Greenpeace distro...
1. Use uce@ftc.gov as your browser email address while surfing. 2. Use president@whitehouse.gov as your login address when signing up for something. 3. Use spamcop.net if you have the time. 4. If using PINE, then BOUNCE all spam to at least uce@ftc.gov 5. If using Microsoft email - um, well, you've got problems - you might as well give up now.
I seem to recall some fierce debates on/. back three years ago when I said that we'd see transactions on the Net taxed by 2002 and in the US by 2005.
I stand by my predictions.
The problem has always been that bricks-and-mortar have to pay taxes to support the infrastructure - and so will Net businesses.
My current prediction is this will become a big issue in 2003, right after the mid-term elections. Much posturing by all parties involved, but they'll slip it in right after the 2004 elections. Or perhaps in 2003, early on, depending on what percentage of tax revenue it is by that point. -
Belo also owns some local TV and Radio stations in Seattle. They're probably using this as a test case in what they deem a friendly (and gullible) circuit court.
As a Texan by birth, can't say as I hold out much hope for justice in this case.
And as for Time magazine - I rip out all the ad pages before I read it, or Newsweek for that matter. It's my magazine, I can do what I want with it. And I do.
According to such liberal news sources as the Wall Street Journal (who have been covering the executive pay structure over the last month), and Fortune, it's the executive pay, bonuses granted during down cycle, and options which make up more than half of their payscale that are the cause of this.
Should web designers (content) be making $60K? Probably not. Should web database designers be making $100K? Probably. Media people usually make low dollars - around $30K to $40K, traditionally, while techie types are worth their weight in gold.
But so long as the execs are trying to justify their inordinate pay increases, they'll try to squeeze it out of the profitable areas of the company, and loot the company.
But what do I know, I own tens of thousands of direct shares in over 40 companies and have been investing for more than 2 decades...
As a minor shareholder (I'm down $10,800 on my remaining 200 shares, but sold about 400 at much higher valuations) - it's my perception that a lot of the losses are on the executive compensation side and bad accounting practices.
Slashdot Mirror
While all three box manufacturers are stuck at $199 USD (while Japan, the EU, and Canada sell them for less) - one wonders when the game price competition will start?
My son said that two kids at school are waiting to buy xBox games when the price drops below $40 USD, since they have to use their own allowance money.
By my calculations, MSFT has to sell 10 games at $50 USD to break even on the price subsidy of the xBox. Nintendo still has a profit on both box and games, and Sony is just at breakeven due to manufacturing efficiencies on the 2.5 yo PS2 with clear profit on the games.
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Right now they can't even keep the GameCube on the shelves in Europe or Japan, and are barely able to keep up with demand in the US.
Remember, they have the sweet spot. Their target audience is women and kids, both of which are major growth sectors, and the ports are flying off the shelves at the game dev shops for their machine. Plus they actually make money on each GameCube they sell, unlike PS2 or xBox.
With hurt like that, who needs pain?
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Well, if they're losing $100 to $150 on the $300 xBox, and the price drops to $149, then you can really distort their metrics by buying 10 xBox, turning them into Linux boxen (or BSD perhaps), and hitting them where it hurts.
...
The xBox needed to sell 8-10 games to break even at the $300 price point. If they're down to $149, with no game sales (oh, c'mon, buy one Halo game if they bundle it for free), then you just hit the Evil Empire with a body blow of a few thousand dollars and got some nice hardware out of the deal
Economics is a cruel mistress.
-
That's $15 * 2 + $40 * 2 + $30 * 3 + $15 + $10 = $225, or a $75 profit on the sale of the XBox and attached games and peripherals.
However, MSFT actually loses between $150 and $200 per console, and based on actual purchases of peripherals and games, they would have to sell 10 games to get close to break even.
And they're not selling more than 2-3 titles per box.
They're toast. Flip them over already.
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Console manufacturers typically subsidize the cost of the console anywhere from 20-50%, so that it is affordable. They then make the money back on games
But Nintendo actually makes money on both the console and the games. Read the annual report if you don't believe me.
The only reason the xBox isn't dead yet is that Bill G has $40 billion in cash reserves.
-
Got a better feel for the story line and characters from their sparse tech-oriented pics for Episode II - not the one that has cutouts of ships and droids, but the one that shows all the characters and their cultural and tech artifacts.
It was only $10.99 at CostCo (caveat - I own stock in that store).
-
at least we're not ACs like you Microsoftie spys on /.
Seems to me that they might be open to Open Source as well. Especially since people get confused and mistake Seattle, the Emerald City of truth and light, for Redmond, where the Dark Lord dwells ... ok, so he's really in an adjacent place, but it's still across the giant Lake Washington that's bigger than Seattle is.
There are some firms, Adobe for example, which are more than helpful in donating software and helping with tech problems - they have done a lot for B.F. Day public school in the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle where they're located. Microsoft seems to go between extremes - sometimes they're helpful, other times they're harmful.
-
To make a long story bearable... I managed to send mail on behalf of the president - to a legitimate address.
...
The whitehouse actually tracked it back to me (Not difficult as I was not trying to hide - just stupid).
Oh, c'mon, they always bring Krispy Kremes and coffee when they interrogate you. So long as you show them the id barcode on your neck, they usually let you go after a couple of hours
-
If you don't buy a US distribution, you're supporting terrorism! Think of the children!
...
That's why I use Big Oil Linux. Then one (1) dollar of the two (2) dollars I spent on it thru cheapbytes goes to support terrorists who will attack the US real soon now.
I used to use Green Power Linux, but Bush showed me the error of my ways. Mind you, it was cheaper and made me a Real Patriot, but if King George says S.u.S.e. was made by Muslim terrorists, according to Mullah Ashcroft, I can't use that.
Good thing I no longer have the old Greenpeace distro
-
they bundle The Sims House Party or The Sims Vacation with Red Hat ...
Otherwise, since Mandrake has a bundle with the basic version of The Sims, I have no incentive to switch distros.
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Forward takes to long.
Bounce with full headers is much much quicker.
I mean, when you get 200 emails a day and only check the logs every couple of days, it adds up.
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1. Use uce@ftc.gov as your browser email address while surfing.
2. Use president@whitehouse.gov as your login address when signing up for something.
3. Use spamcop.net if you have the time.
4. If using PINE, then BOUNCE all spam to at least uce@ftc.gov
5. If using Microsoft email - um, well, you've got problems - you might as well give up now.
-
As a dual Canadian/American, born in the USA, I have rights as a Canadian citizen resident in the USA.
Congress can propose, but they can't gut a treaty - and Free Trade gave Canada and Mexico the right to sue on behalf of their nationals.
Forcing me to use opt-out when I'm required by the Electronic Privacy Act enacted by Canada in January of 2001 to be given opt-in just won't fly.
Time to use that birthright of mine, the lawsuit, to shame those who would take my other American birthright, privacy.
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I seem to recall some fierce debates on /. back three years ago when I said that we'd see transactions on the Net taxed by 2002 and in the US by 2005.
I stand by my predictions.
The problem has always been that bricks-and-mortar have to pay taxes to support the infrastructure - and so will Net businesses.
My current prediction is this will become a big issue in 2003, right after the mid-term elections. Much posturing by all parties involved, but they'll slip it in right after the 2004 elections. Or perhaps in 2003, early on, depending on what percentage of tax revenue it is by that point.
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I already have a job. In fact, I have tons of investments, so it's not that big a deal to me.
and give them visas.
....
Do the math - H1b Visa Programs are merely an attempt to get cheap labor and not pay for American workers.
If you want high tech people to immigrate and become American citizens - those with advanced degrees - great!
But instead we cut down on US jobs for American IT workers and don't cut the H1B jobs.
Follow the money
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gotta agree. I used to buy tons of CDs due to listening to MP3's - and then they brought in this copy protection and all.
Just burned me out.
So, now I mostly buy CDs at shows by artists themselves - at least I know where the money goes.
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Well, you're right, we have less privacy and fewer privacy rights in the US than in Canada.
...
We sold out our rights.
And as a Canuck, you tend to trust government. Here, only rubes trust government.
But what do I know, I'm a dual citizen of both countries
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I love the idea. Let's start by embedding the eyes of all the members of Congress and the Senate on such cards. Not the scans, the actual eyes.
I'll help.
If I run Lynx on Linux, then I have to have GNOME or KDE, right?
So there is NO WAY I can run a web browser on the Linux kernel.
Well, guess that makes me an MIT Professor.
Next, I will proceed to demonstrate why gravity doesn't exist, and how the moon is made of blue cheese.
The only kernels I use are for popping.
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In which case Microsmurf should be on the Most Wanted list right up there with the al-Qaeda ...
...
It's only FAIR
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Belo also owns some local TV and Radio stations in Seattle. They're probably using this as a test case in what they deem a friendly (and gullible) circuit court.
As a Texan by birth, can't say as I hold out much hope for justice in this case.
And as for Time magazine - I rip out all the ad pages before I read it, or Newsweek for that matter. It's my magazine, I can do what I want with it. And I do.
-
According to such liberal news sources as the Wall Street Journal (who have been covering the executive pay structure over the last month), and Fortune, it's the executive pay, bonuses granted during down cycle, and options which make up more than half of their payscale that are the cause of this.
...
Should web designers (content) be making $60K? Probably not. Should web database designers be making $100K? Probably. Media people usually make low dollars - around $30K to $40K, traditionally, while techie types are worth their weight in gold.
But so long as the execs are trying to justify their inordinate pay increases, they'll try to squeeze it out of the profitable areas of the company, and loot the company.
But what do I know, I own tens of thousands of direct shares in over 40 companies and have been investing for more than 2 decades
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As a minor shareholder (I'm down $10,800 on my remaining 200 shares, but sold about 400 at much higher valuations) - it's my perception that a lot of the losses are on the executive compensation side and bad accounting practices.
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