Microsoft temporarily slashes Xbox One price

Microsoft Corp. on Monday announced a temporary $50 price-cut on its Xbox One video game console. The new price will initially be effective only in the U.S., but potentially the company could offer something similar in other regions as well.

From the 2nd of November, 2014, through the 3rd of January, 2015, participating retailers will sell various Xbox One bundles with a $50 discount. The promotional price applies to any Xbox One console, including special edition bundles. The most affordable Xbox One version without Kinect motion sensor will cost $349 this holiday season.

Microsoft did not unveil any exact plans concerning temporary price-cuts in the U.K. or Europe, but it did say that “regional availability and timing outside the U.S. will vary”, which means that it has plans to slash Xbox One’s price in certain regions as well.

“Fans don’t have to wait for Black Friday this year to enjoy great savings on Xbox One. We’re offering our best price yet, with unprecedented choices and value, so more people can play on Xbox One this holiday,” said Yusuf Mehdi, corporate vice president of Microsoft. “We’re gearing up for one of our biggest holidays ever and we are thrilled to offer fans up to $150 in [cumulative] savings on Xbox One and some of the biggest blockbuster games of the season.”

Sales of Microsoft Xbox One are believed to be significantly behind shipments of its arch-rival, Sony’s PlayStation 4. VGChartz.com estimates that life-to-date sales of Xbox One are 6.1 million, whereas Sony has managed to sell 12.3 million of PS4 systems so far. As a result, Microsoft has to slash price of its latest console in order to improve its sales.

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KitGuru Says: While price-cuts always catalyze people to buy, it is unclear whether a temporary promotional price will actually help Microsoft to ship significantly more consoles and catch up with sales of Sony’s PS4.

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