Analysis: Average Xbox 360 Price Has Dropped 100usd In 3 Months

As part of an exclusive NPD analysis, Gamasutra is estimating that the average U.S. Xbox 360 console is selling for $100 less than its lifetime average 3 months ago, making the system "ideally positioned" to compete this holiday season.

The price cuts worked: 69,000 Xbox 360 systems were sold each week during September, giving Microsoft its best hardware month this year. What is far more telling, however, is how the average price of each system sold changed after the price drop.

According to the NPD Group, the average sale price (ASP) of an Xbox 360 from its launch through July 2008 was just over $376. We estimate that the ASP was in the $330 to $340 range during August.

For September, we estimate that the ASP of the Xbox 360 dropped to $276, about $100 below its lifetime average and more than $50 below its average before the price drop.

If our estimates are correct, then this signals an even greater role for the $200 Arcade model in Microsoft's hardware mix.

http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/new...hp?story=20714