Il successo di Xbox 360: la parola a Steve Ballmer

Steve Ballmer, CEO di Microsoft Corporation, è stato recentemente intervistato circa il successo di Xbox 360 legato indubbiamente all'abbassamento di prezzo. Gli è stato chiesto in particolar modo se tale manovra è stata eseguita per combattere il rallentamento delle vendite o per mancanza di idee di marketing. Ballmer, scuotendo la testa, ha affermato che questa è una delle cose più folli che avesse mai sentito, aggiungendo che tutte le console che vengono immesse sul mercato sono destinate prima o poi ad un abbassamento di prezzo lungo l'intero ciclo vitale. Si ritiene pertanto soddisfatto del lavoro svolto definendo le alte vendite di Xbox 360 come un "successo incondizionato".

Q If you look at what they've done in the last year or two, do you view any of your consumer products as unqualified successes?

A I certainly would say the work that we've done around Xbox is an unqualified success. No question about that.

Q How so?

A The product is selling very well. The Xbox is an absolute home run.

Q But sales of the Xbox have slowed markedly. It's been overtaken by the Wii. The PS3 is starting to catch up. You cut the price on it, which some might say is an indication you have run out of ideas to boost sales.

A No, that's the craziest thing I've ever heard anybody say. All consoles start at higher prices. They always come down through the long cycle.

Q The story in July at E3 was that you had many bullets left in your holster that you could use to juice Xbox sales. You had all these great games that were coming out for the fall, and you didn't need to cut price to juice sales. But now two months later, you've cut the price.

A Price is not something you discuss externally. Nobody ever does. So, whether we were planning on cutting price the next day or in six months or a year, we're not going to discuss price changes.

If you ask me, Xbox Live is going gangbusters. The console is selling well.