Contracts for Video Game Consoles

[Loony BoB]

The next big thing in gaming, potentially. It's like buying a phone on contract - you pay a certain amount at the beginning ($99 for an Xbox 360 and Kinect bundle) and then have a fixed monthly cost for the next two years ($15 per month for Xbox Live Gold and potentially more). What are your thoughts? A good thing? Bad?

Gamasutra - News - Report: Microsoft to undercut competition with surprise $99 Xbox 360 bundle (http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/169646/Report_Microsoft_to_undercut_competition_with_surprise_99_Xbox_360_bundle.php)

[VeloZer0]

As long as you still have the option to buy the console outright for a reasonable price I don't see how it would hurt anyone. In the end it is just a form of a financing plan.

[Araciel]

Calculator says that's 460.00...SOoooo I'mma say as long as us rich people can still pay a reasonable price for the system we want all in one go instead of getting buttraped by paying out during a two year term... yea I don't care.

[Roto13]

Everyone loves cell phone contracts!

Right??

[edczxcvbnm]

From what bob said, this isn't actually a terrible deal. For two years of XBox live and a Xbox that brings you to 420 over those two years. Putting yourself on a payment plan like this isn't a good deal but they are not exactly raping you outright. Although, if you need to be put on the payment plan though, you probably shouldn't be buying a video game in the first place.

[Slothy]

Everyone loves cell phone contracts!

Right??

Yeah. I'm not sure how anyone can look at the cell phone industry and decide that emulating one of it's more reviled aspects is a good thing. At least if you buy it outright and your financial situation goes south down the road you can sell the console, cancel your membership and not be too badly off. Now if you can't afford the monthly fee you get to pay them a lovely cancellation fee before you can sell the thing.

Honestly, the whole thing smacks a bit of preying on those who don't know any better. The monthly payment plan sounds a lot more tempting to people who should rightly be scared off by a sticker price of a few hundred bucks. But once they're locked in they're pretty much boned if they realize down the road they can't afford it. Hopefully they never decide to make this sort of service mandatory, even if it would be the last reason I really need to never buy a console again.

[Del Murder]

As long as you still have the option to buy the console outright for a reasonable price I don't see how it would hurt anyone. In the end it is just a form of a financing plan.
My thought too. I personally like to pay for things up front so I wouldn't do it.

[NorthernChaosGod]

I would prefer to just buy the thing outright. Seems like a cheap ploy to get more money from poor people. :colbert:

[krissy]

mortgage your house to play sims 6!

[edczxcvbnm]

I revise my support of this measure. I thought they were giving away the full $300 xbox. If it were that xbox then it would not have been a big deal. That plus 2 years of live is 420 upfront but 460 with the contract. Not a huge difference and for you high school kid working part time, maybe not a bad deal. But the 200 system? That is pretty shitty. That explodes the difference in cost to a level I can not support. For an extra 100 you could buy that system outright. Fuck that noise.

[Bolivar]

Yeah, the math doesn't add up on this one, it's paying a lot more, but over a period of time. Plus subscription for a console/platform's online services isn't how Valve, Sony, Apple, Google, and Nintendo get down so I don't see this as a future option for the big platforms, but maybe if one of the cloud services offer a sophisticated device, I could see it. I think cable/satellite providers are going to take that over very soon.

[Quindiana Jones]

Hey guys, I just noticed that Microsoft are bastards. Now it all makes sense. :roll2

I've been losing a lotta love for the Xbox since Microsoft introduced that title update (every part of which I hate) and started advertising on a service I'm already fucking paying for.

[DMKA]

Honestly, I've never been the least bit bothered by service contracts, you could even say, I like them, as I've always felt signing a two year contract is a small trade for the amount of money you get off of the initial purchase in return.

But then, I'm not an irresponsible individual who won't pay my bills, nor have I ever been.

I actually like this idea, and I would have ate it up had it been an option when I purchased my 360.

I hope future consoles follow suit.

[krissy]

Hi Craigslist

I need to sell my PS4 it's new just got it last month but then my parents got me one too and they paid upfront

so what we gotta do is transfer the contract (I'm with SonyFido) and pay the contract transfer fees (let's split the 20) and you have to log into PSN2 to transfer the account so if you don't have a PSN2 account you can't do it stop messaging me if you don't have one!!!11

I have CoD7 and Madden 2015 that'll transfer over with it, but there's 3 payments left on the Madden so you gotta do that with EA so if you need an EA account too so we can transfer the payments

NO LOWBALLERS

[Freya]

Yeah but it's also only the 4 gb one so you'll need a harddrive too. And that'll set you back at least 100 I believe. So you'll end up having to buy that as well!

[Slothy]

Honestly, I've never been the least bit bothered by service contracts, you could even say, I like them, as I've always felt signing a two year contract is a small trade for the amount of money you get off of the initial purchase in return.

It is generally worth it, so long as nothing happens to your device and you're actually getting a deal. Phone contracts where you're getting hundreds off the price of the phone? Sure I can see the appeal so long as the plan they require is well priced for your needs. But should anything happen to your phone? Tough tit. You're still paying every month and you have to buy a new one. The damage may not even be your fault for that matter. The phone may have simply died after the warranty expired. More companies are offering early upgrade options now so it's less of a problem (because they literally bleed customers when this sort of stuff happens. Tell a person they have to pay full price to replace their phone and they will pay the cancellation fee just to get a free phone somewhere else and tell you to suck it more often than not), though if they're just tacking another 2-3 year contract onto your existing contract you're getting ripped off.


But then, I'm not an irresponsible individual who won't pay my bills, nor have I ever been.

You don't have to be irresponsible to not be able to pay your bills on time. "I'm sorry you lost your job and can't afford this phone and contract anymore sir, just pay the $200-300 cancellation fee and all of your outstanding bills and you'll never hear from us again."

I'd have less of a problem with service contracts for electronics if they didn't leave customers completely and utterly at the mercy of corporations with better lawyers than you could hire, even if pursuing legal action made any economic sense for an individual.