I don’t know why they wouldn’t consider selling at a loss if it means bringing a massive user base over to their gaming ecosystem where they take a 30% cut of game sales. 700-800 is probably a good price point for what you get. I’m just not a big enough gamer to justify dropping that kind of money on a setup to try out PC gaming.
missingno@fedia.io 6 hours ago
Console manufacturers sell at a loss because they have to sell the hardware first before they can sell anything else. They know they'll get that money back on software you couldn't have bought without the console.
While I'm sure Valve hopes to bring some new customers to Steam this way, I'll bet that the majority of Steam Machines sold will be to users who are already invested in Steam and have an existing library of games to play. If they take a loss on hardware, they can't be certain they're actually making up for it elsewhere.
It's not practical for the Machine to be a loss leader because it's a supplementary product, not one the rest of their business is dependent on.
myspecialpurpose@lemmy.ca 5 hours ago
They used the same strategy for the steam deck. Valve acknowledged that it was sold at a loss or near loss and it was incredibly successful because it broke into the handheld market. Don’t know why they wouldn’t do the same for this console like system. I’m hoping they do.
missingno@fedia.io 5 hours ago
Do you have a source for that? All I can find are conflicting rumors and speculation.
myspecialpurpose@lemmy.ca 4 hours ago
nme.com/…/gabe-newell-says-steam-decks-aggressive…
indiekings.com/…/why-valve-sells-steam-deck-at-lo…