We’ve talked about Microsoft’s Games on Demand initiative for Xbox 360 time and time again, but hey, we aren’t the only ones. Analyst Michael Pachter also has a few things to say about the digital distribution service as well.
“I think that the point of pricing at or above catalog prices at retail is to capture the convenience customer, who wants the game and doesn’t plan to make a special trip to the store to buy it.” So, late night impulse buys? I may have done one or two of those in my time.
“Microsoft is going to experiment with pricing until it gets it right. It’s harder to start low and raise price than it is to start high and cut price,” says Pachter. “My guess is that as they build a library, Games On Demand will have a variety of pricing from $10–30.” That certainly sounds like a smart idea, but the “smart” idea isn’t always the one that gets chosen, unfortunately.
If it were up to me, I’d suggest Microsoft take a good hard look at the way Valve handles pricing and promotions on its ridiculously successful Steam service. If the videogame is cheap enough, we will buy it, even if we don’t necessarily need it.
