When the PS3 first hot retail it had an enourmous number printed right on the place where the price tag goes. Despite the retail price, though, Sony still lost quite a bit of money on the then-new system. The cost of manufacturing PS3s got lower and lower over the years, until finally Sony managed to turn a profit.

Just recently, Sony announced a US$ 50 global price cut for the gaming console's 160GB and 320GB models, meaning you can get a brand new PS3 now for less than US$ 250. One question springs to mind in the wake of this price cut, though: is Sony still making money on the thing now that it's relatively pretty cheap?

According to SCEA's hardware marketing director, John Koller, the answer is yes. "It is still profitable," he told IGN. "We're not going into the red."

Apparently Sony has been thinking of giving the console a price cu for quite some time now. Koller says it took them over a year to finally find the right time to implement the price cut, and now that they've announced it they expect "a lot of traction", especially from those who want a second gaming console.

"We're opening our arms for the Xbox 360 and Wii owners to come over," Koller said. "There's a real opportunity for those consumers to be able to play, what we view, are the best games in the industry on the PS3 this fall.

"There's a significant number of Xbox 360 and Wii owners who would like that second console and want to have the opportunity to play these exclusive games and content experiences, and this new price point allows them to do that."

Thanks to the price cut, the 160 GB PS3 and the 320GB PS3 are now available for US$ 249 and US$ 299, respectively.

Via [IGN]

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