At least, not if you’re Australian.
David over at Kotaku has confirmed with Microsoft that the Xbox Live price hikes we covered earlier aren’t on the cards for Australian users of the service.
Before you crack out the expensive champagne, though, it’s worth pointing out that the price hikes in the US still leave the service cheaper for Americans than the price we pay here. At current exchange rates, the $US59.99 asking price for a 12-month subscription equates to just over $67 Australian. Current Australian Xbox Live pricing for a 12-month subscription? $79.99.
[Kotaku]
RB
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 at 11:55 AMYay for ‘You Live Too Far From Everything For Us To Care About You’ TAX!
Drew
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 at 1:25 PMThat’s why I renew yearly through:
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/XBOX-360-LIVE-12-MONTH-GOLD-MEMBERSHIP-FREE-FAST-POST-/320573767715?pt=AU_PC_Video_Games_Games
I’d much rather pay $60 instead.
Farmer Daniel
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 at 3:06 PMEven that is expensive. I spend ~$55.
Lisa
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 at 7:33 PMThe US price doesn’t include GST like the Australian one does. Take that off & it’s $71 vs the $67 that they pay in the US – sounds pretty close to me where I’d give them the benefit of the doubt…
Alex Kidman
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 at 9:15 PMBut you can’t (legally speaking) avoid paying the GST, even if you’re eligible to claim it back eventually, so it’s not accurate to look at it from a deducting GST point of view.
Sales tax in the US does vary, but even at, say 10%, that’d bring it up to around US$65, which is roughly AU$73 with taxes included. We still pay more.
Drew
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 at 10:49 PMROFL how could you possibly claim a Xbox Live subscription?