Activision has today for the first time, defended its decision to price Modern Warfare 2 at £54.99 RRP.
The UK managing director, Andrew Brown broke the silence and felt ‘consumers were getting a good deal’. Most games in the UK are priced at £39.99-£49.99, however back in July, Activision confirmed the inflated price-point.
However, it remained for a spokesman from rival company THQ to defend there decision:
“Exchange rates between the Euro and the pound are making it very difficult for publishers to show an acceptable operating margin in the UK,” said Ian Curran from THQ.
“You can’t continue to trade as normal when the biggest territory in Europe has seen cost of goods increase by 30 per cent due to the strengthening of the Euro. Publishers somehow need to offset this drastic increase in costs. I’m not surprised to see the [Modern Warfare 2] SRP go up and I feel this will continue across more key titles.
However, Brown from Activision today spoke out for the first time and said:
“At the end of the day, there is a spectrum of what people can afford and what people are prepared to spend. These things are key,” said Brown.
“This is an industry where things cost a lot to develop and it’s a risky business. We talk about building franchises; it is very expensive to do this from every respect. What we are finding is that for the right products, if you look at the time someone will spend playing something and compare it to something else, people are saying it’s worth it.” he added.
What do you think of the price increase? Is it worth it? Tell us below.
