Sony Cuts 8,000 Jobs - Time to Cut the PS3 Too?

With the economy deep in the throes of a recession, the only question these days is who - or what - is next? Today it was Sony's turn, which, citing "the sudden and rapid changes in the global economic environment," said it's laying off 8,000 employees in its electronics division and shuttering 10 percent of its manufacturing facilities.

What this means is too soon to tell, but if you were to ask GIGAOM, they would say it's time for Sony to walk away from the Playstation 3 as much as possible. Its $400 price point is uniquely ill-suited for these recessionary times, and while the company could lower that MSRP, it already loses $130-$260 on each sale (depending on who you believe.) Meanwhile, the Xbox 360 sold twice as many units as the PS3 in October, the most recent month for which data is available (though both consoles trail far behind the Wii.) With the PS3's install base so small in comparison, and the appeal of its highly touted Blu-ray drive questionable at best, it's hard to see Sony benefiting from Playstation 3.