In an interview with Martin Matt, from the popular GameIndustry.biz site, Sony UK managing director Ray Maguire calls America "a land of cheap people", while the UK is “a little island where rent and rates are at an absolute premium”. When asked about the high price of the PS3 in PAL areas, especially in the UK (where Sony’s console is currently being sold for GBP 425- US $840- more expensive than anywhere in Europe) this is what Ray Maguire had to say: “If you take what's considered to be the most expensive and the least expensive – consider the US with its massive land and cheap people. Then you look at the UK – a little island where rent and rates are at an absolute premium, and the cost of people is a lot more. The cost of retail is vastly more in the UK than it is in the US and that's before you even stop to consider the US doesn't have VAT at RRP, they put a small amount on afterwards. Whereas, we get stung by 17.5 per cent. And pity the poor Irish and places like Sweden. But we have to remember this is no different to selling a cup of Starbucks coffee or a McDonald's hamburger. This is the cost of living in the UK. It just becomes another barrier for us to get more product into the marketplace because the price needs to be set higher to get from our factory to the consumer.” Maguire continued to defend PlayStation 3’s actual price of GBP425 by saying it’s “the best for the consumer” although he admitted Sony had thought at selling its product for a higher price, namely GBP 429. Concerning PS3’s apparently disastrous debut in PAL areas, the Sony UK official admitted to some “issues”, but argued that every console launch had its tides in the past: “Well, it's certainly not been smooth sailing. I'd have to say that every launch has its issues. Sometimes they're behind the scenes so you'll see the grace of the swan above the water and not the rapid movement of legs beneath.” He also put much of the responsibility for Sony’s bad press in the recent period on the media’s continuous hunger for sensational and biased articles, accusing journalists of being “lazy” when it comes to selecting information for their articles: “Nowadays, with how the media works, not only does information fly around at the speed of light, so does mis-information. With blogs on the increase, people's thought processes are transferred from one place to another and picked up by people who might be lazy when it comes to finding out whether something is true or not. The old adage of never let the truth get in the way of a good story is probably more prevalent than it has been before”.
Stating the obvious, really. Based on our currency, we are definitely getting a killer deal compared to the rest of the international community (for the PS3, I mean).
Taken in context, he's referring to cost-of-living. And yes, in most places in the U.S. the cost of living is cheaper than in comparable parts of the Eastern Hemisphere.
He probably said that out of frustration. Whenever businessmen complain or point their fingers, it's due to losing money. If they were making money, they wouldn't resort to insults. So, this is just a sign that the PS3 is doomed in Europe.
I don't know about you guys but if I called my girlfriend cheap she wouldn't consider it a compliment.iunderstand
If you just take his one line then yes, he is calling Americans cheap. But read the whole article, if you take it in context he's saying the cost of living is cheaper. He even says how starbucks and Mcdonalds is more expensive in the UK.
There is no problem cause nobody wants that pos anyway.
you seem to be pretty mad
Pretty much so. I meant that the words sony said weren't meant as an insult, i didn't mean that insulting americans is ok. Hope You didn't misinterpret my post.
Stating the obvious, really. Based on our currency, we are definitely getting a killer deal compared to the rest of the international community (for the PS3, I mean).
Basinboy
thats one way to look at it, to me its not worth it here, and rest of the world is getting ripped off even more :/
[QUOTE="iunderstand"]I don't know about you guys but if I called my girlfriend cheap she wouldn't consider it a compliment.Thrice_III
If you just take his one line then yes, he is calling Americans cheap. But read the whole article, if you take it in context he's saying the cost of living is cheaper. He even says how starbucks and Mcdonalds is more expensive in the UK. He could have said it in a less condescending way. Calling the American people cheap isn't the best way to get his point across...
[QUOTE="superkoolstud"][QUOTE="m3Boarder32"]I pay $1700 dollars a month to rent a 850 square foot apartment. Is that really considered cheap?m3Boarder32
You can afford a mortgage in the Suburbs for that much look into it.
No you can't. Even in the suburbs the cheapest houses cost over $500K. Besides, i don't wanna leave Orange County CA.
cause thats california...ugh...house in illinois range from 300k-750k, where i live
[QUOTE="Thrice_III"][QUOTE="iunderstand"]I don't know about you guys but if I called my girlfriend cheap she wouldn't consider it a compliment.iunderstand
If you just take his one line then yes, he is calling Americans cheap. But read the whole article, if you take it in context he's saying the cost of living is cheaper. He even says how starbucks and Mcdonalds is more expensive in the UK. He could have said it in a less condescending way. Calling the American people cheap isn't the best way to get his point across... Exactly. Japan and Europe have it worse. Fine. We get it, but that doesn't mean $600 is chump change in this country.
I agree, it isn't an insult. North America just has a lower cost of living than Europe and Japan. he just said massive land and cheap people. lol this is not praising its insulting.
He's just mad that the X360 and Wii are selling way better and that the Ps3 is only wanted by techno geeks that know what all those wierd numbers mean that supposedly make it better, and that America is the greatest country ever, we have had to save europes sorry ass twice... sorry my patriotic side took over for a while.
[QUOTE="superkoolstud"][QUOTE="m3Boarder32"]I pay $1700 dollars a month to rent a 850 square foot apartment. Is that really considered cheap?m3Boarder32
You can afford a mortgage in the Suburbs for that much look into it.
No you can't. Even in the suburbs the cheapest houses cost over $500K. Besides, i don't wanna leave Orange County CA.
cause thats california...ugh...house in illinois range from 300k-750k, where i live
Studios start at 300K around here..
studios? :lol: wow cost of living is high as hell where you live. 300k is like a mansion where i live.
Believe it or not, Europe has paid off their debts. They have saved us just as many times we have saved them.
What I don't like is most Europeans attitudes. They somehow have it harder than us... really, now? Most of you have socialistic benefits provided by your government that WE don't have.
Anyway.. this is going off-topic. I'm kinda pissed off at Sony.. and there's no way in hell I'm purchasing some of their "cheap" hardware.
wow this does not affect me or anyone else...if it does......you really must hate being called cheapNuclearFreedom
I, like many others, don't appreciate being called cheap when we've already got enough on our plates between rent, mortgage, bills, school, cars, etc. Europeans have the higher price. Fine. Whatever. $600 isn't just something we can find underneath our couches. Even people with good jobs and a lot of money aren't willing to buy the PS3. Why? Cause there's not enough games on it to justify the high price tag. Plain and simple.
I work my tail off between school, work, taking care of some family and relatives who are sick, paying bills, taking care of things in the house, so excuse me if I'm not as fortunate as others, or excuse me if I don't have $600 lying right under my bed just jumping at the chance to buy a console which has a couple decent games and isn't worth the high price tag. So yeah, I don't appreciate being called cheap, thanks.
Not tryin to attack you personally NF, but I guess you took this a lot better than some others. :P
France saved us in the American Revolution. Britain aided us in WW2 (and yes, Hitler was the aspiring Napoleon of the time... he wanted the world). Umm we aided Britain in WW2, France is one country in Europe but I know that they aided us in the American Revolution.
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