Microsoft raising prices for US, Canada, UK, and Mexico

[Serio]

Microsoft has today announced that, as of November 1, 2010, it will be raising the price of Xbox Live subscriptions in the United States, Canada, Mexico and the United Kingdom.

In the United States, twelve months of Xbox Live Gold will now cost $59.99 instead of $49.99. A three-month subscription will cost $24.99 instead of $19.99, while one month will cost $9.99 as opposed to $7.99. In the UK, a month will cost 5.99GPB, in Canada it'll be $9.99CAD and in Mexico, twelve months is listed at 599 Pesos.

There's been no word on twelve-month subscriptions for the UK yet. We'll update if there's any more on regional pricing changes.
Source: http://www.destructoid.com/microsoft-raising-xbox-live-subscription-prices-182745.phtml
No word on a change for Europe or the rest of the world so far.

[CemeteryGates]

So the price is going up on my birthday? What a present. :p

Who are they kidding, though? I remember reading a statement that Microsoft wouldn't change their prices and as soon as the 2008 economic crisis, the annual membership went from $500 MXP to $700. The dollar went from about $10/11 to $13 when it got steady... that's a 18-30% increase, but the rise in price is actually 40%... curious, isn't it? But not surprising from this failed state. This'll probably boost the price up even more than the supposed $100 MXP.

[Steph]

Well that's great. Why are they only raising them in these specific countries?

[MyNameDidntFit]

I don't think they are, they just haven't released the pricing scheme for everywhere yet.

[Jason]

It's also possible that those are probably the four countries with the largest incomes from XBL subscriptions, and Microsoft are testing the waters to see exactly how big an uproar this causes.

Personally, it irks me but isn't the end of the world. I haven't paid full 'Microsoft' price for an XBL subscription yet - if you shop around, there's always a better deal than the one Microsoft are offering, so this is unlikely to excessively lighten my wallet.

[MyNameDidntFit]

If anyone really wants to complain about eighty-three cents per month extra well... then you're being kind of fickle ;)

[Jason]

You are aware we're talking about gamers here, right? The same demographic that were in uproar because one of the most successful games of 2008 (Left 4 Dead) launched a vastly superior sequel a whole 12 months later? :p

[MyNameDidntFit]

EIGHTY-THREE CENTS.

Dammit, man.

[Jason]

We both know that for once, I'm right

I agree with you, it's absolutely nothing in real terms, but the rebels without a clue on forums everywhere will be ranting and raving about this like Microsoft just banned all non-white heterosexual able-bodied males from ever even owning an Xbox. Cue lots of arguments about it 'not being about the money it's the principle' and so on, which are the usual arguments when the masses get self-righteous.

[Lance]

You're talking to a brit here man, he doesn't understand the cents things, you gotta talk to him in his own language.

Jase - it's like when Microsoft bump up the price of Live subscription from 400 sheep a year to 401 sheep, which is like a peice of leg a month.

Personally I find I don't even buy Live Subscriptions - I've had a few free months here and there from promo's, but I've yet to even jump online -.-

[MyNameDidntFit]

We both know that for once, I'm right

Now, I know this is a big event for you to finally say that and mean it, but... no.

I know there will be complaining. Does that mean it isn't fickle as all hell? No. The loudest portion of gamers are pathetically fickle -- does that mean that you have to be irked by FIFTY-FOUR PENCE* A MONTH? I certainly hope not.







*or whatever absurd currency you have over there.

[JustaBitOutside]

Umm, left 4 dead 2 superior? Ehhh.... I'll just pay the 83 cents :)

[Jason]

Now, I know this is a big event for you to finally say that and mean it, but... no.

I know there will be complaining. Does that mean it isn't fickle as all hell? No. The loudest portion of gamers are pathetically fickle -- does that mean that you have to be irked by FIFTY-FOUR PENCE* A MONTH? I certainly hope not.







*or whatever absurd currency you have over there.

You missed the point - I agree with you that it's fickle as hell. The only reason I'm irked is that I can see no reason why Microsoft need to do this seeing as they already charge for online play (free on the PS3), additional peripherals (granted many of which are now included in the new Xbox 360) and just about anything else they think they can get away with. It's a mild irritation rather than an outrage, but I'm certainly not going to be throwing my hands up in the air and demanding heads on sticks, threatening to cancel my Xbox Live subscription etc etc etc.

But there will be plenty that WILL do that. Gamers are probably one of the most self-righteous and fickle breeds out there. Hell, I might not be paid that well, but for the amount of time I spend on Xbox Live each month, I could live with paying an extra 50p. That's barely a sixth of a pint over here.
As it happens, this price rise likely won't bother me too much, as I bought a couple of one-year cards for about £25 each on Amazon last year, so I'm unlikely to need to renew before 2012 anyway. :p

[JustaBitOutside]

Can't believe I never thought about getting cards from Ebay until now. Dammit! :)

[Jason]

I dunno about ebay, that's a potentially dodgy one because if the card doesn't work, I'm not sure how much comeback there is, or if Paypal cover that under their buyer protection scheme, but definitely have a good look round on the 'net. I've always found Amazon's prices on XBL cards pretty competitive, and as alluded to in the last post, for £25 ($38-ish?) you can get a year's subscription.

[Steph]

Now, I know this is a big event for you to finally say that and mean it, but... no.

I know there will be complaining. Does that mean it isn't fickle as all hell? No. The loudest portion of gamers are pathetically fickle -- does that mean that you have to be irked by FIFTY-FOUR PENCE* A MONTH? I certainly hope not.







*or whatever absurd currency you have over there.

Every penny counts when you're skint.

I dunno about ebay, that's a potentially dodgy one because if the card doesn't work, I'm not sure how much comeback there is, or if Paypal cover that under their buyer protection scheme, but definitely have a good look round on the 'net. I've always found Amazon's prices on XBL cards pretty competitive, and as alluded to in the last post, for £25 ($38-ish?) you can get a year's subscription.

I can't I've never thought about that before either.

[CemeteryGates]

It's not a lot of money, true, but Mexico is the only third world country of that list.
What's the minimum wage in the US, UK and Canada? I believe it's around $6 an hour in the US. That means you will now be able to pay for your yearly subscription for 10 hours of work in that salary, which is just over an average working day, right?
But in Mexico, the minimum wage is roughly equivalent to $3.5 USD per day. Even if it did end up costing the "official" $600 MXP ($46 USD; cheaper than the US prices, so you can see why it's never going to be that "official" price), that means you would have to work a full 14 days and not spend any money so you can buy your annual Xbox Live.
So, if you're realistic, as you need to eat in 14 days, the time you need to raise the money gets longer. And if you consider it's currently priced at $700 MXP, and this increase could very well be $150 MXP rather than $100 (which would be consistent with the price of the US dollar, but also with $20 that are just rounded up and represent additional profits, as they're known to do here), then the final price is $65 USD, which taking into account no expenses during that time, means 19 working days to be able to pay for your subscription.

That won't affect me. I'd rather spend those $150 on something else, but I can easily afford it. I do think it's a significant blow for people in the lower social classes who saved up for a year or more to buy their 360 and just wish to play online and forget about how miserable this God-forsaken hole is for just a couple of hours.

[Jason]

Good point, well made, CG. Raising the prices for those in the poorer countries does seem a very harsh and poorly thought-out move by Microsoft.

[MyNameDidntFit]

You missed the point
Back at you. You may have noticed that I said people will be pissed for the sake of being pissed (or not?). You may also, howe- ah, to hell with it. I said my piece in the post above. Read it again if you want to get my view.

Every penny counts when you're skint.
If you're that poor, why are you buying an Xbox 360, an internet connection and Live? Oh... er... what? I don't know. But I know if I was so poor that $10 a year was a significant difference I would certainly not spend $300 on a gaming platform and $X on an internet connection that I didn't need -- but maybe I'm just a very astute economist...

Really, things like Live are a luxury and if US$10 a year is too much extra for you... well, tough titties, mate.

/callous rant.

[Jason]

Once again, myself and MNDF display an amazing ability to argue despite essentially agreeing with each other. :p

[Steph]

If you're that poor, why are you buying an Xbox 360, an internet connection and Live? Oh... er... what? I don't know. But I know if I was so poor that $10 a year was a significant difference I would certainly not spend $300 on a gaming platform and $X on an internet connection that I didn't need -- but maybe I'm just a very astute economist...

Really, things like Live are a luxury and if US$10 a year is too much extra for you... well, tough titties, mate.

/callous rant.

Yeah when you put it in that perspective it seems very stupid.

It's just the idea of the prices rising that I don't like. Feels unfair to me.

[Diachron]

Heh-- many interesting points in here.

At the end of the day, luxury pricing can be both difficult to defend OR attack. We're not buying XBL subscriptions to put food on the table-- we're buying them for leisure.

I would also point out that MS initially came under fire for even charging for XBL in the first place. Nintendo's strategy was decidedly non-strategic, and Sony vowed to always keep their online services free.

A few years later, the Microsoft model has been sufficiently vindicated to encourage Sony to offer premium [paid] services, and has given the micro-transaction financial model a serious credibility boost across several platforms (the PC MMORPG not being the least of them!).

Personally, I don't mind paying the subscription. The model has allowed MS to maintain a best-in-class multiplayer architecture that is consistent from game to game. It also gives third parties a model by which to offer incentives and perks, which drives traffic and exposure to other goods and services.

In general, you tend to get what you pay for. And even if you choose to opt-out of a gold membership, you can still thank the subscription model for funding what is arguably the best console online network.

And to a point Jason made earlier, the MS price is the 'no-fuss' price. A simple google alert or an occasional search on services like SlickDeals.net will frequently yield full-year subscriptions at a dramatically discounted rate.

I'm not dancing in the streets over the rate hike, but I still think it's a good deal for what it funds.

[Jason]

Nintendo's strategy was decidedly non-strategic

What are multiplayar? :p

Seriously though, for the first console that I can recall shipping with four controller ports as standard (N64), Nintendo's approach to multiplayer this generation has been embarrassing. Mario Kart Wii is the only game I've seen with even vaguely functional multiplayer features. They're really going to have to sort that out if they're going to continue to be a major player as the 'family-friendly' face of gaming, because even for 'casual' gamers, multiplayer is the future of gaming.

[Diachron]

What are multiplayar? :p

Seriously though, for the first console that I can recall shipping with four controller ports as standard (N64), Nintendo's approach to multiplayer this generation has been embarrassing. Mario Kart Wii is the only game I've seen with even vaguely functional multiplayer features. They're really going to have to sort that out if they're going to continue to be a major player as the 'family-friendly' face of gaming, because even for 'casual' gamers, multiplayer is the future of gaming.

Agreed. I can't remember exactly who made the statement, but I remember Nintendo being quite clear about their online disdain a few E3's ago. Nintendo dismissed online as an expensive and unnecessary complication.

Between an anemic infrastructure and a prohibitively convoluted friend system ("I'll fax you my secret code which you can tap out in Morse code to confirm"), Nintendo is dead last on a feature set that is quickly becoming a consumer expectation. There are signals coming out of NOA that indicate this will be addressed in the next generation. Let's hope!

[MyNameDidntFit]

It's just the idea of the prices rising that I don't like. Feels unfair to me.

No-one likes giving more. But when you think about it, it's reasonable. The main thing I think about when I see this is the following: eight years ago Live cost US$49.99 -- surely it has improved since then?

Now, that leads to me thinking of complaining about this price rise in the same vein as complaining that a 2010 model car is more expensive than a 2002 model of the same car.




Or maybe it's just because I don't have a 360 so this doesn't effect me? :p

[Steph]

No-one likes giving more. But when you think about it, it's reasonable. The main thing I think about when I see this is the following: eight years ago Live cost US$49.99 -- surely it has improved since then?

Now, that leads to me thinking of complaining about this price rise in the same vein as complaining that a 2010 model car is more expensive than a 2002 model of the same car.




Or maybe it's just because I don't have a 360 so this doesn't effect me? :p
Well, in cars, a 2010 model compared to a 2002 model will have improvements and such like, wouldn't it?
What have they improved about xbox Live that justifies this price increase?
Despite how minimal.

It probably is the fact that you don't have a 360 :P

[CemeteryGates]

Well, in cars, a 2010 model compared to a 2002 model will have improvements and such like, wouldn't it?
What have they improved about xbox Live that justifies this price increase?
Despite how minimal.

It probably is the fact that you don't have a 360 :P


What haven't they improved?
I hate to side to an argument that justifies the rise in price, but MNDF is right, and we have to be objective.

I had Xbox Live in the original Xbox. Hell, I still have to cancel my account that gets billed every year.
Ever found host migrations in Modern Warfare 2 annoying? Imagine that happening about four times as much.
Also, it had no real interface... buying DLC was extremely awkward.
Talking over the microphone often sounded like static/white noise. I don't udnerstand why that happened, but I observed it many times, and some people complained they couldn't hear my voice, just noise.
There was a lot of lag, as well.

And the details are many... don't recall most of them right now, but yeah, it has definitely improved a lot since then.

[MyNameDidntFit]

What have they improved about xbox Live that justifies this price increase?
Despite how minimal.

I have no idea -- never had an xbox. But I was assuming that it would have improved because, well, when you run a service for 8 years you tend to improve it... and, from CG's reply, it seems I was right to assume as such ;)

[Steph]

Haha fair enough, I stand corrected.
:p