AfterDawn: Tech news

Analyst warns Xbox 360 Elite wont boost market share

Written by James Delahunty @ 31 Mar 2007 1:46 User comments (13)

Analyst warns Xbox 360 Elite wont boost market share IDC analyst Billy Pidgeon has warned that the forth coming release of the Xbox 360 Elite will not boost Microsoft's market share this year. Instead, he believes that it is software titles that will make a difference for the company. "The Xbox 360 Elite may sway some gamers waiting to decide on a new system, but I don't expect the Elite to have much an effect on the 360's market share this year," he told GamesIndustry.biz.
He added: "The higher price and the 120GB hard-drive upgrade should increase revenue for Microsoft and for retailers, but system-selling games such as Halo 3 will increase the 360's position more significantly." He did say however that the release of the console and Microsoft's further expansions to online gaming shows that the company is working hard to dominate the area.

"With the 360, Microsoft is extending the online capabilities of Xbox Live including downloads of long form video as well as games and game add-ons, and the point of increasing the hard-drive to 120GB is to enable 360 Xbox Live gamers to download more items more often," he said. "Extending Live to Vista systems will also increase Microsoft's online audience, which is an important metric now and going forward."



Source:
GamesIndustry.biz

Previous Next  

13 user comments

131.3.2007 18:40

I believe that Microsoft made a fatal mistake in not supporting the original console, including or making the HDMI cable for the system. Microsoft stated that all the inner workings are the same. If that is so, why not make a HDMI cable for the other two consoles. I strongly believe that this can be achieved using the power of the ANNA upscaling chip. 1080p was achieved after an upgrade in October of last year using the VGA cable. Why not create a HDMI cable.

231.3.2007 18:57

In my opinion, the release of the Elite is a brilliant move. I'd have to disagree with the analyst that says this will not be a boost to the MS market share. I know I'm NOT going to replace my old 360 with the Elite, but I'm sure MANY people will for one reason or another (the sleek look, HDMI, Large hard drive....etc). Then they will either have two 360s, give the original one away to family/friends, or maybe sell their original 360s to people that may not have normally purchased one. Sooner or later, more people own a 360 and the MS market share increases. Of course Halo 3 is going to help sell consoles, but I believe the Elite will be a contributing factor as well.

331.3.2007 19:55
26r0cK
Inactive

I think that xbox360 is doing very well rite now so I question MS motive towards this move. However, its not like this will be the only model of the 360 so to those that still want to play xbox360 they can always just get the lower models. I do feel that these upgrades are nothing spectacular which I wish they added that to the premium without highering the price. Having the black look for any xbox360 model would definately be a positive instead of only just the elite. But I think this elite model wouldnt help boost sales because if ppl just want to play, then they have 2 lower and cheaper models to choose then this. This just might make ppl think more between the Elite360 and the PS3. But we'll see what happens months from now.

431.3.2007 21:26

i think this is a complete sellout, MS are now playing catchup with Sony after the release of the PS3.

so what they give it a lick of paint a bigger hdd and a HDMI port, things it should have had from the get go.

why add those things and not a HD-DVD drive.

its pathetic that this console is only a year or so old, and there already having to make new additions.

and for close to $500, no1 is going to buy this thing.

why?, well for starters its near $500, most consoles are bought by parents for there children. why would they buy a $500 version when the $300 version does the same only with a smaller hdd

If MS where serious about this, it would have had a HD-DVD drive.

MS are setting themselves up for a fall.

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 31 Mar 2007 @ 9:37

51.4.2007 03:29

when xbox360 was released ..HDMI was not quite the standard it is today ..and many of the HDTV's in homes lacked it. But im guessing you are a 360 hater anyway.

In case you didn't know .. microsoft is shooting high with IP tv ... and now since bandwidth is becoming ever so cheaper ... IP tv is going to be a reality very soon.

Personally ... few games take advantage of 1080p ..and the ones that do ... there is almost no difference to a human eye. I think they should offer teh 120gig hard drive as an add on as well ..like they did with the previous generation.

61.4.2007 09:21

this is more a save arse gain money move than making headway,becuse the 360 is neihter cheap or godly they wont make headway,if they bucked down sold it with the 65nm CPU for 400 or 350 they would make some real headway.

The PS3 is not cheap but its simi godly(solid hardware) so it will gain ground on power alone

the WII is cheap and simi godly(the controls are fun) so its everywhere by default almost.

I wish MS would get off their arse and just fix it already....but no....they just have to play games.....

71.4.2007 10:25

The way a couple of these last posts sounded it's like MS is behind the PS3. But it's so far ahead (In North America anyway). Besides FF, which isn't really a system mover, there are no killer apps lined up for the PS3 and MS still has Halo. Plus Sony is losing a bunch of exclusives because publishers are worried they won't sell on the PS3 alone (Resident Evl 4 on GC all over again). So they aren't playing catch up at all. I agree with the analyst that it will do little for their market share, hardware alone doesn't sell systems (see PS3 sales). Halo is what will increase market shares. The original XBOX is the perfect example of that.

81.4.2007 10:57

TyMan4325
*L*
the PS3 is the new power system plus its based in japan that right their will will gain it allot of ground,if you didnt know about the 360s issues its ok for its price,the WII dose well what what it has and it a system everyone needs tog et anyway :P

91.4.2007 12:04

I totally agree that when it comes to the Japanese market you can't compare the 360 to the PS3 but I think the wii proves that horsepower is meaningless when it comes to sales. I think MS is on the right track here by improving the 360. It's still cheaper than the PS3 and the library is also much better. Overall as much as I love my PS2 I think the PS3 has been a disaster for Sony. Even if graphically it can in theory marginally outperform the 360 no one but hard cores like myself care. I think it will only be a matter of time before MS takes a dent out of Sony's market in Japan as well. Especially if they start to take away some of Sony's exclusive titles.

101.4.2007 12:07
KiNtArO01
Inactive

its a shame microsoft you should be more worried about the junky systems you guys have out now and fix the overheating/3 red light error not on making a all together different system. you see put it this way get better cheaper parts sell systems for less = make more money but ur all to stupid to realize that oooo and for the elite it will prob be a failure 500$ system like the others u make its a shame

111.4.2007 12:16

Originally posted by KiNtArO01:
its a shame microsoft you should be more worried about the junky systems you guys have out now and fix the overheating/3 red light error not on making a all together different system. you see put it this way get better cheaper parts sell systems for less = make more money but ur all to stupid to realize that oooo and for the elite it will prob be a failure 500$ system like the others u make its a shame
the Elite is nto a diffrent system its a 360 with bandaide on the chipset and a ductaped old CPU and a HDD slapped on it wif rope :P
This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 01 Apr 2007 @ 12:17

121.4.2007 13:02

Meh the PS2 had more problems. PS3 hasn't seen as many because no one bought any so there are no complaints :) All joking aside overall I think its a meaningless release that will do little for previous owners and its new features aren't going to make anyone knew run out there and get one, Halo will this won't.

131.4.2007 13:22

Originally posted by TyMan4325:
Meh the PS2 had more problems. PS3 hasn't seen as many because no one bought any so there are no complaints :) All joking aside overall I think its a meaningless release that will do little for previous owners and its new features aren't going to make anyone knew run out there and get one, Halo will this won't.
well this is not to "help" they will get some moeny off selling the half fixed black system to fanboys as they get the real fix going for all new systems later in the year.

Comments have been disabled for this article.

Latest news

VLC hits milestone: over 5 billion downloads VLC hits milestone: over 5 billion downloads (16 Mar 2024 4:31)
VLC Media Player, the versatile video-software powerhouse, has achieved a remarkable feat: it has been downloaded over 5 billion times.
1 user comment
Sideloading apps to Android gets easier, as Google settles its lawsuit Sideloading apps to Android gets easier, as Google settles its lawsuit (19 Dec 2023 11:09)
Google settled its lawsuit in September 2023, and one of the settlement terms was that the way applications are installed on Android from outside the Google Play Store must become simpler. In the future, installing APK files will be easier.
8 user comments
Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets (06 Jun 2023 9:19)
Roomba Combo j7+ is the very first Roomba model to combine robot vacuum with mopping features. And Roomba Combo j7+ does all that with a very clever trick, which tackles the problem with mopping and carpets. But is it any good? We found out.
Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations (02 May 2023 3:38)
Neato Robotics has ceased its operations. American robot vacuum pioneer founded in 2005 has finally called it quits and company will cease its operations and sales. Only a skeleton crew will remain who will keep the servers running until 2028.
5 user comments
How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp (20 Mar 2023 1:25)
The world's most popular messaging platform, Meta-owned WhatsApp has enabled sending messages to yourself. While at first, this might seem like an odd feature, it can be very useful in a lot of situations. ....
18 user comments

News archive