Xbox Live subscription reduced to $30 USD

by Stevie Smith - Jan 19 2009, 06:17

While recent sweeping Xbox 360 price cuts have seen Microsoft extend its market lead over main rival Sony and its PlayStation 3 console, Sony’s cost-free PlayStation Network remains a more attractive online multiplayer facet that manages to tarnish Microsoft’s subscription-based Xbox Live platform.

Annual Xbox Live subscription drops by $20 USD. Image: Microsoft.

However, the well established Xbox Live service, which was made completely free to PC users in July of 2008, is now considerably more appealing to Xbox 360 owners thanks to a substantial price cut implemented by retail giant Amazon.Unveiled by Amazon.com this past Sunday as part of its latest accessories sale, the price cut covers Microsoft’s Xbox Live Gold Subscription card and brings the usual $49.99 USD price down to a much more tempting $29.97 USD. The product delivers a full 12 months of complete Xbox Live access, which includes worldwide multiplayer gaming as well as the download of free videogame demos and trailers, and the cost-based download of additional gameplay content, full games, TV shows, movies and other related items.Although Xbox Live boasts some 17 million subscribers and a wealth of online content, Sony’s relatively new PlayStation Network enables PlayStation 3 owners to take advantage of a similarly structured service without any form of charged access.It remains to be seen whether the Amazon price cut emerges as little more than a temporary reduction or if Redmond-based Microsoft moves to expand free PC access to also include its Xbox 360 user base. Although, given the substantial Xbox Live revenue stream Microsoft reaps from its console customers, that might not be forthcoming any time soon. According to Microsoft, generation-leading price adjustments made to its gaming hardware have helped the company sell 28 million Xbox 360 consoles around the world, which it claims is some eight million more units than the PlayStation 3.The Xbox 360 outperformed the PlayStation 3 by a ratio of 2-to-1 in December, according to market research specialist NPD Group.

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Cha0s216Jan 19th, 2009 - 06:45:55

Figured i would go by my xbox handle seeing as it pertains, but Microsoft sure pulled a fast one waited for the rush of live sales after the holidays then cut the prices, Great going Microsoft just got my subscription no more the two weeks ago and now you lower the prices. Where is my refund!!

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SteveR - TTHJan 19th, 2009 - 06:57:22

@Cha0s216

Have you contacted them for one? I'd say you have a hell of a case. If you do contact them, let us know what they tell you.

-Steve

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packratt64Jan 19th, 2009 - 07:09:35

Umm, hello, XBOX Live's attractiveness to consumers doesn't have anything to do with price. It has to do with the fact that there are 17 million registered members. This is why Playstation Network, or Home, or whatever the hell they're calling it now, has been a colossal failure. Sony still can't deliver exclusive good games (good games tuned for online play), and it won't match Microsoft's user base until the console price falls.

This is rather like Microsoft Office as the killer app for Microsoft Windows. M$ makes a killing on Office, which in turn funds Windows development--people are willing to pay for Office because everyone uses it. A similar system is in place with the XBox and XBox 360. Why do you think Microsoft was willing to sell the original XBox at a loss? They were making a killing on Xbox Live, which people are willing to pay for because everyone uses it.

I'm all for the price cut, though I won't be able to take advantage of it for a few months yet. Please, though, don't pretend that Sony has a competitive online offering. It doesn't.

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XXXMonkeyJan 19th, 2009 - 07:18:48

@Chaos... It's not an official Microsoft price cut, it's an Amazon sale reduction. The article makes that clear.

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XXXMonkeyJan 19th, 2009 - 07:23:26

Also, @packratt... Sony's PlayStation Network is already matching Xbox Live when it comes to registered users (on a free service that's many years younger than Xbox Live), which certainly makes it a competitive platform in my eyes -- and probably in Microsoft's too.

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JonJan 19th, 2009 - 07:37:33

I have a subscription too, I rarely am online anymore though. Whats funny is the silver membership allows you to go online so you can be bombarded by micro trying to sell something. I look at is as downloading demos saves me a lot of money not buying a crappy game until i have tried it. Thats were the money saved spend money saved is.

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DavidJan 19th, 2009 - 16:47:21

Great news, I just ordered three, my sons and mine expire in March, and my wifes new arcade 360 (Xmas gift this year) only had a one month trial which expires in two weeks.

great timing for me, thanks Amazon

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badboyJan 20th, 2009 - 01:51:01

lmao....looks like Microsoft ship is start sinking..

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Matthew DoucetteJan 23rd, 2009 - 11:16:55

Where's the link? Where do we go to buy it? I am on Amazon.com and do not see the deal.

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