Wii to retail at $250

**Mr. Monday Morning** · 05-31-2006, 12:00 PM

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nf/20060526/bs_nf/43564

Gamers still mulling their options following the unveiling of cool new consoles from Nintendo and Sony at the recent E3 2006 conference might want to take a closer look at the Wii, given that Nintendo has formally priced the machine well below the competing boxes.

The price, $250, is half the cost of Sony's $499 PlayStation 3 console and considerably less than Microsoft's top-end
Xbox 360 that sells for about $400.

Nintendo has set its sights on shipping six million Wii systems worldwide between its launch later this year and the end of March 2007. The company also said it expects to sell 17 million Wii games during that period.

The lower price tag could help the company gain some ground on Microsoft, which effectively is a year ahead of both Nintendo and Sony in introducing the Xbox 360 late last year.

While Sony is touting the superfast Cell processor and Blu-ray video technology in the PlayStation 3, there has been debate about whether gaming enthusiasts would shell out $499 for the basic PlayStation 3 unit. "Price point is absolutely an issue for Sony," said Yankee Group analyst Michael Goodman.

Nintendo, meanwhile, is taking a different approach by downplaying eye-popping graphics in favor of the dynamic interaction offered by the Wii's innovative motion-sensing controller. That selling point was somewhat blunted, though, by a similar controller unveiled by Sony for the PlayStation 3.

"The Wii's graphics are certainly improved over the Game Cube," said Jon Erensen of Gartner, in a recent interview, "but they're talking more about how games feel." With emphasis on its new controller, he said, Nintendo is looking to draw buyers who have never played video games before.

Meanwhile, Microsoft is ramping up production of the Xbox 360, with plans to deliver two to three times the number of machines currently shipping to retail outlets each week.

"We will see a manufacturing battle between Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo for the next 12 months or so, with Microsoft pressing its advantage of being first to deliver a next-generation console," said Goodman. "Every unit they sell until the launch of the PS3 and Wii extends the gap that Sony and Nintendo have to close."

According to a recently released report from the NPD Group, retail sales of game consoles, software, and accessories climbed to a record $10.5 billion in 2005, an increase of 6 percent over the $9.9 billion sold in 2004. The record-setting year exceeded the previous record of $10.3 billion set in 2002.

"The full impact of next-generation consoles on the consumer market won't unfold until Sony's and Nintendo's video-game consoles hit U.S. retail shelves," said NPD analyst Anita Frazier.

05-31-2006, 12:00 PM	#1
Mr. Monday Morning All Part Of The Plan Posts: 12,125	Wii to retail at $250 http://news.yahoo.com/s/nf/20060526/bs_nf/43564 Gamers still mulling their options following the unveiling of cool new consoles from Nintendo and Sony at the recent E3 2006 conference might want to take a closer look at the Wii, given that Nintendo has formally priced the machine well below the competing boxes. The price, $250, is half the cost of Sony's $499 PlayStation 3 console and considerably less than Microsoft's top-end Xbox 360 that sells for about $400. Nintendo has set its sights on shipping six million Wii systems worldwide between its launch later this year and the end of March 2007. The company also said it expects to sell 17 million Wii games during that period. The lower price tag could help the company gain some ground on Microsoft, which effectively is a year ahead of both Nintendo and Sony in introducing the Xbox 360 late last year. While Sony is touting the superfast Cell processor and Blu-ray video technology in the PlayStation 3, there has been debate about whether gaming enthusiasts would shell out $499 for the basic PlayStation 3 unit. "Price point is absolutely an issue for Sony," said Yankee Group analyst Michael Goodman. Nintendo, meanwhile, is taking a different approach by downplaying eye-popping graphics in favor of the dynamic interaction offered by the Wii's innovative motion-sensing controller. That selling point was somewhat blunted, though, by a similar controller unveiled by Sony for the PlayStation 3. "The Wii's graphics are certainly improved over the Game Cube," said Jon Erensen of Gartner, in a recent interview, "but they're talking more about how games feel." With emphasis on its new controller, he said, Nintendo is looking to draw buyers who have never played video games before. Meanwhile, Microsoft is ramping up production of the Xbox 360, with plans to deliver two to three times the number of machines currently shipping to retail outlets each week. "We will see a manufacturing battle between Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo for the next 12 months or so, with Microsoft pressing its advantage of being first to deliver a next-generation console," said Goodman. "Every unit they sell until the launch of the PS3 and Wii extends the gap that Sony and Nintendo have to close." According to a recently released report from the NPD Group, retail sales of game consoles, software, and accessories climbed to a record $10.5 billion in 2005, an increase of 6 percent over the $9.9 billion sold in 2004. The record-setting year exceeded the previous record of $10.3 billion set in 2002. "The full impact of next-generation consoles on the consumer market won't unfold until Sony's and Nintendo's video-game consoles hit U.S. retail shelves," said NPD analyst Anita Frazier.