Price can be a major game changer when it comes to the console market and this is apparent in the sales performance of the PlayStation 4 (PS4) and Xbox One on eBay during their respective launch weeks.
Data released by the market research firm Terapeak shows that PS4 outsold the Xbox One by a huge margin. From November 15 to November 22, eBay sales for the PS4 were $12,554,461, while sales for the Xbox One from November 22 to November 29 amounted to only $7,898,233. The Terapeak data also shows that Sony's console sold 21,309 units, beating the 11,992 total unit sale of Xbox One by a 78 percent margin.
An eBay representative said at least 10,000 PS4 units were sold during the platform's weekend launch on November 15-17, outpacing the 7,000 Xbox One units sold between November 22-24. Incidentally, the PS4 launch covered North America only while the Xbox One was made available to 13 markets around the world.
Per Kotaku, the average price of the PS4 units sold on eBay during its launch week is $425.50, slightly higher than its retail price of $399. The higher-than-retail price suggests that there is more demand for Sony's console than what traditional retailers are able to supply. The average price of the Xbox One, on the other hand, is $481.18, which is lower than its retail price of $499.
The difference in the sales performance of the two consoles can be largely attributed to their price. The PS4 retails at almost $100 less than the Xbox One. Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter says that what prevented the Xbox One from matching the sales of the PS4 is the price and warns that Microsoft may lose the next generation war unless it cuts price.
"If Microsoft drops its price to $399, I expect the sales to be equal to the PS4," Pachter told an audience at the Game Monetization USA Summit in San Francisco.
Pachter estimates that Sony can sell up to 120 million units of PS4 if it continues to be the cheaper platform while Microsoft may manage to sell 90 to 110 million Xbox One units. The analyst also ruled out a comeback by Nintendo, saying the Wii U would manage to sell 30 million units "or fewer" during its lifetime.
