Xbox Live Price Hikes in November

This just in from Major Nelson: Microsoft has announced that Xbox Live Gold will see a price increase this November affecting the US, UK, Canada and Mexico. Starting November 1st, a single month will increase from $7.99 to 9.99, three months from $19.99 to $24.99 and the yearly subscription will go from $49.99 to $59.99. Though Microsoft tried to soften the blow by offering a promotion for a discounted $40 one-year Gold subscription, one has to question the timing of the price increase. With the release of Kinect just around the corner, Microsoft is sure to see a spike in Xbox live subscriptions; after all, the Kinect was designed to open up gaming to a broader demographic much in the same way the Wii did for Nintendo. I could more understand raising the price of Live if you knew subscriptions were not going to move any time soon while the cost of running the service, thanks to new features and content, continued to rise. Everyone here still loves Xbox Live and we’ll continue to be loyal followers; It just seems to me that the influx of new users that will accompany the Kinect’s release would increase Microsoft’s revenue stream WITHOUT them having to raise the price. Of course, I’m no financial analyst….just a humble writer; what are your thoughts?

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