My idea for a a promo after January 2014

[drjekel_mrhyde]

From the end on January till March 31st(after Xmas slow down period) give out a free Nokia Lumia 520 Go phone to anyone who buy a Xbox 1 during that time. The ads should show it being used with Smart glass. Coupon only good at At&t wireless stores and retailers defacto forcing the reps to actually look and learn WP

 

[realwarder]

Twitter AT&T/Microsoft.

 

[teckris]

From the end on January till March 31st(after Xmas slow down period) give out a free Nokia Lumia 520 Go phone to anyone who buy a Xbox 1 during that time. The ads should show it being used with Smart glass. Coupon only good at At&t wireless stores and retailers defacto forcing the reps to actually look and learn WP

So you going to buy XBOX in 2014?? ha ha.. Nice idea anyway..

 

[mase123987]

You wouldn't be able to announce it until after the holiday season so you don't hurt Christmas sales. That said, while it may help, I could see a lot of them (if not most) going straight to Craigslist or Ebay.

 

[Keith Wallace]

I don't think selling the phones would matter, though. As long as phones end up in users' hands, it is a good thing. Besides, the profitability of a $150 phone is questionable.

 

[mase123987]

I don't think selling the phones would matter, though. As long as phones end up in users' hands, it is a good thing. Besides, the profitability of a $150 phone is questionable.

But the cost of giving them away isn't!

 

[kc77]

They gave away Xbox 360s with the purchase of laptops up until last year, they'd lose less giving a phone away then giving an Xbox away. However, you'd obviously have to get Nokia on board and make it available to more than att users somehow. People wont activate an att account for go phone if they're already on another carrier.

 

[a5cent]

For Nokia this would be great, as MS would be picking up the tab, but it isn't gonna happen. Why? Because the Xbox One is already heavily subsidized (sold below cost). Piling on another $100 to MS' expenses just isn't gonna fly.

What would probably work better, while also preventing thousands of L521's showing up on Craigslist, would be to add $50 (non transferable) to the Xbox owners account, which can only be spent in the WP marketplace.

Not everyone will cash that check, so it will cost MS much less, while still giving them a good opportunity to explain why an Xbox should be paired with a WP device.

 

[a5cent]

I don't think selling the phones would matter, though. As long as phones end up in users' hands, it is a good thing. Besides, the profitability of a $150 phone is questionable.

It definitely matters to Nokia. Even $30 in profits is important, particularly if you are selling millions of devices. It doesn't matter however, as MS would have to pay Nokia for those devices. It isn't Nokia's job, nor in their interests, to subsidize MS' gaming console.

 

[a5cent]

They gave away Xbox 360s with the purchase of laptops up until last year, they'd lose less giving a phone away then giving an Xbox away.

Wrong. The Xbox 360 is a decade old. It has become very cheap to produce. Microsoft lost hundreds of millions when it came out, due to MS loosing money on every unit sold, even without considering the hardware defects/returns.

Really, the Xbox one is far more expensive than the 360. It should be obvious that MS won't be able to offer the same kind of bundles.

 

[Keith Wallace]

I think you misunderstood the matter. I meant that if people got the promo devices and sold them, it shouldn't matter to Nokia or Microsoft, as long as they are increasing marketshare with the promotion. For example, if someone got a free 520, sold it on eBay, then used the proceeds to get a 920 or something, that's two devices added to the Windows Phone count through the promo.

 

[a5cent]

I think you misunderstood the matter. I meant that if people got the promo devices and sold them, it shouldn't matter to Nokia or Microsoft, as long as they are increasing marketshare with the promotion. For example, if someone got a free 520, sold it on eBay, then used the proceeds to get a 920 or something, that's two devices added to the Windows Phone count through the promo.

As MS would be paying for it, there would be no direct financial impact on Nokia. True. However, I don't think it would look good if tens of thousands of L520s were being sold on Craigslist for $20, for the entire length of the promo.

 

[kc77]

The problem is, I don't think they would sell them to put the earnings toward a 920/25/28 etc. They would probably put the earning towards a new iPhone or Android because they're too stingy to even give the platform a try. You wouldn't believe how many people tell me my phone is junk because its running windows. Not that they've ever actually used it, they just tell me it sucks because the guy at the store said the phones were garbage. I think it could be a great idea but I also think current mindset would put a damper on things. If only there was a way to have demos set up by Microsoft in stores for the phones.

 

[drjekel_mrhyde]

With the leaks of the new UI and Microsoft buying Nokia, my idea is not too far fetched