XBOX PRICE CUT IN JAPAN?
May 1, 2002

Following the price cut in Europe, which took effect last week, there was immediate speculation that price cuts in Japan and North America would follow. It remains, as it has been, a question of when, not if.

John Connors, Microsoft CFO, told Nihon Keizai Shinbun that the company is considering a price cut in Japan to boost sales, although there did not seem to be any sense of urgency placed on this statement. He also emphasized Microsoft's online strategy as a key to sales growth.

Furthermore, despite Xbox being short of initial sales projections, he said, it has outperformed other American products in Japan and has also been more profitable than previously expected.