James Delahunty
23 Nov 2005 22:28
According to a study by BusinessWeek, Microsoft is losing about $125 per every HDD-equipped Xbox 360. Back in 2001, Microsoft also lost an estimated $125 per Xbox console. After sacrificing billions, the Redmond-based company was proud of its number two position in the worldwide games console market. Microsoft has sold 22 million Xbox consoles, ahead of the 16 million GameCubes sold by Nintendo but still very far behind the 90 million PS2s Sony has sold.
Tech researcher iSuppli disassembled an Xbox 360 and came to the conclusion that it would cost $470 to manufacture, meaning Microsoft loses $71 before each HDD-equipped Xbox 360 goes to the factory. iSuppli's research only takes the console itself into account however. When adding in the peripherals included with the HDD-equipped Xbox 360 "premium pack", the loss rises to $126. Remember this is also before any money is spent on labor.
The demand for the Xbox 360 during its North American launch yesterday was huge, leaving many gamers disappointed when they couldn't get their hands on one. However, a large amount of complaints about the console have already surfaced, including claims that some owners experience crashes within 20 minutes of switching on the console, during normal usage or use of Xbox Live. Some other owners are also disappointed with the console's multimedia support.
Source:
GameSpot