The world is going through a difficult economic scenario. This, of course, affects many industries. Among them is technology, as several companies have been forced to raise the prices of their products due to inflation and constant changes in the value of currencies. Sony, for example, had to increase the cost of the PS5, and Microsoft is likely to follow the same path with Xbox services and consoles..
Although at the end of August, representatives of Redmond said that they were not considering a price increase for the Xbox Series X|S, today their speech has changed somewhat. In an interview with Wall Street Magazine which collects Tom WarrenPhil Spencer, head of Xbox warned that There will come a time when the company will not be able to maintain operating costs.:
“We kept the prices of our console, we kept the prices of the games…and our subscription. I don’t think we can do this forever. I think at some point we will have to raise some prices. for some things…”
Be careful with the previous statement because not only does it anticipate a possible price increase for the Xbox console, also on Xbox Game Pass. Since its launch, the service has proven itself to be a great offer. Not only because of the large number of items it offers, but also because of its low price. Today, there is no better video game subscription than Microsoft. Now, raising the monthly rate can change that perception in the blink of an eye.
Despite all of the above, Spencer also commented that at least during the Christmas season – the most important in terms of sales for the video game industry – there will be no movement. “I think at some point we will have to raise prices on some things, but in the run-up to the holidays [de fin de año] We felt it was important to keep prices low.”
Will we see an increase in the number of Xbox consoles and services next year? From the words of its director, you can guess that yes. If this happens, Microsoft will follow in the footsteps of Sony and even Steam.
The move that the Japanese made is already well known. PS5 went up in price at the end of August almost all over the world except the USA. In Spain, it now costs €549.99 (previously €499.99) and €449.99 (previously €399.99) for the standard and digital versions respectively. Mexico, for its part, saw a $1,000 increase for each model, so $14,999 and $12,499 must now be paid.
Regarding Steam, Valve raised recommended prices for games. In addition to adapting the current value of the US dollar, they also want to ensure developers don’t have as many problems setting costs based on each region’s currency.
Source: Hiper Textual
