All of the Asia-Pacific territories where Microsoft sells the Xbox, with the sole exception of Japan, have seen the price of the console and its software slashed this week in an attempt to compete more strongly with the PS2. In South Korea, the Xbox console sees a price cut of just over 10 per cent, bringing the system to 249,800 Won (€180), below the price of the PS2 which retails for 272,800 Won (€198).
Perhaps more importantly, however, the price of a number of key games will also be falling - with Rallisport Challenge, NBA Inside Drive 2003, Quantum Redshift, Bloodwake and Whacked! all now retailing at 29,000 Won (€21) apiece, down from their previous price of 52,000 Won (€38), and Blinx and MechAssault also reduced to a lower pricepoint of 36,000 Won (€26).
News source: The Reg
Perhaps more importantly, however, the price of a number of key games will also be falling - with Rallisport Challenge, NBA Inside Drive 2003, Quantum Redshift, Bloodwake and Whacked! all now retailing at 29,000 Won (€21) apiece, down from their previous price of 52,000 Won (€38), and Blinx and MechAssault also reduced to a lower pricepoint of 36,000 Won (€26).
News source: The Reg
"Europe is under-exposed to the PC market and is therefore not benefitting to the same degree from the seasonal demand improvements," Woolf said. "If a higher exposure to the telecoms market has led Europe to underperform in May, then this increases the likelihood that STMicroelectronics could miss its second quarter revenue target."
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expect STMicroelectronics to report revenue of $1.7 billion for the three months ended June 30. Some of the weakness in the European market could be offset in coming months by the region's strength in the automotive and industrial markets.
The entire chip market witnessed an unexpected upswing in May with the Semiconductor Industry Association reporting that its three-month moving average figures showed sales improved as the effects of SARS on the sector began to wane.
Actual May chip sales rose even more strongly as unit shipment surged at a double-digit rate. Worldwide sales increased to $12 billion, up 11% from $10.7 billion in the year-ago month. Sales increased from $41.2 billion in April.
"The revenue increased chiefly because of strong shipment of 12% month-over-month and 54% year-over-year," said Jay Kim, an analyst at Goodmorning Shinhan Securites, Tokyo, in a report. "Although the shipment growth of 54% year-over-year is lower than the previous months' 73% in March and 69% in April, strong pricing in recent weeks bodes well for the global DRAM outlook."
On a regional basis, sales in the Americas declined 7%, to $2.47 billion from $2.65 billion in May 2002, continuing a trend that has seen the region lose market share to Asia-Pacific, which grew 12%, to $4.65 billion from $4.16 billion. Japan recorded the strongest year-over-year sales increase in May, rising 26% to $2.93 billion from $2.33 billion in the year-ago month.
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