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Game over for Sony and Nintendo staffers
Posted by Fired Fred on June 6, 2007 5:46 PM
The disastrous debut of the PlayStation 3 has rippled through Sony like a tainted burrito through a fat guy's colon at 2 a.m. After toasting hundreds of jobs at Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, they unleashed the layoff thunder on the American side...
Roughly 80 to 100 employees of Sony Computer Entertainment of America's Foster City headquarters were laid off today, Kotaku has learned from a source who was among those asked to hand in their badge and keys before leaving the premises.http://www.gameinformer.com/NR/exeres/DBDBAA74-D8AD-4175-8286-3E54EB0494F1.htm I'm mystified at the story of people fleeing Nintendo of America. They have the chance to ditch the sticks of Redmond, WA, for their choice of San Francisco or New York.
The lay-offs, which were preceded by a months long hiring freeze, were prompted by SCEI's call for cut backs which in turn was spurred by the company's multi-billion dollar losses and the sky-rocketing cost of PS3 game development, upper management told those who remained at the office.
I would think sales and marketing people would gladly sell other people's souls for the chance to work in either big city. Nintendo's people would rather quit. I guess high taxes and street crime isn't for everyone.
Neither Sony's CEO nor its Japanese executives were harmed in the past two bloodlettings.
It's mainly because Sony under priced the PS3 to get them out in the market. Their losses on these systems are enormous, mainly because they incorporate a BluRay DVD system, most of which alone go for over $1,000. Then add the computer components, HDMI, up-converting capability, hard drive and operating system, and you have a $2,500 game console. They hope to make back the losses via game sales & their patent on the BluRay technology, but it will take years.
Posted on: June 12, 2007 1:48 PM
Why is there a picture of Pacman on a story for PS3???
Good article.
-j
Posted on: June 13, 2007 1:14 PM