The OFFICIAL PS3 Vs X360 Vs Wii

[BlackKnight]

How can a system have too high an attach rate? The software sales per unit sold at a lost is where the profit comes from.

[garyoak99]

How can a system have too high an attach rate? The software sales per unit sold at a lost is where the profit comes from.

 

Okay, the article goes on to say this:

 

Because of this, even if the hardware installed base were to remain relatively unchanged over the next 18 months, the software attach rate would continue to climb. Thus, while the numbers would seem to indicate a healthy consumer trend for the Xbox 360, the report concludes that “its growth will be capped fairly quickly without an ever-expanding hardware installed base.”

 

The report further adds that the Xbox 360's high software attach rate is “a damning commentary on the limited hardware installed base, most of whom are hard-core gamers.” The analysts add that what is actually needed by Microsoft for its latest console, as well as by third party software publishers, is “quicker adoption of hardware and a rapidly growing installed base on which to sell progressively more game units,” rather than just more games sold per existing Xbox 360 owner.

 

I don't understand this comment though:

 

The software sales per unit sold at a lost is where the profit comes from.

 

"Sold at a lost?"

[gavin19]

I don't understand this comment though:

 

The software sales per unit sold at a lost is where the profit comes from.

 

"Sold at a lost?"

 

I assume BK meant that given the 360 itself is sold at a loss, then the software sales are where the profit comes from.

[garyoak99]

I assume BK meant that given the 360 itself is sold at a loss, then the software sales are where the profit comes from.

 

Oh! I see; that would make much more sense! The only problem with that would be the following argument:

 

What does it benefit publishers and investors if ten games are being purchased by a total audience of 10 million 360 owners? It doesn’t take effort to see that a console with an attach rate of 8 and an installed base of 50 million is superior to a console with an attach rate of 12 with an installed base of 20 mln."

 

The amount of hardware sold does affect the ultimate profit although the software attach rate is important to a certain degree.

[BlackKnight]

What does it benefit publishers and investors if ten games are being purchased by a total audience of 10 million 360 owners? It doesn’t take effort to see that a console with an attach rate of 8 and an installed base of 50 million is superior to a console with an attach rate of 12 with an installed base of 20 mln."

Yeh but if we're comparing the Wii and the 360, it's more like an installed base of 50 million with an attach rate of 0.5, as compared to the 360.

 

As for the PS3, the installed base is similar to the 360, but with an attach rate of about half as many games per machine.

[garyoak99]

Yeh but if we're comparing the Wii and the 360, it's more like an installed base of 50 million with an attach rate of 0.5, as compared to the 360.

 

As for the PS3, the installed base is similar to the 360, but with an attach rate of about half as many games per machine.

 

That is a bit excessive; the latest software sales ratios were from April of this year:

 

Xbox 360: software sales ratio: 7.5

Wii: software sales ratio: 5.3

PS3: software sales ratio: 4.6

 

The Wii software sales ratio or attach rate doesn't look THAT bad compared with the Xbox 360 especially considering the Xbox 360 did have an extra year to market its games. The software sales ratio for PS3 does look bad even considering that both the Wii and the PS3's software ratios have already improved from what they were just six months ago!

[BlackKnight]

Those numbers are skewed. Remember that the Wii has always had 1 pack in title. The 360 and PS3 have and haven't, but the Wii always has, in every box.