Sony: 360 GTA won't hurt us

Just as many in the industry agree that Sony ruled E3 2005, several also saw the company's showing at E3 2006 as disappointing. The price tag of the PlayStation 3 ($600 for the high-end model), coupled with the fact that some previously announced features were scrapped, left some scratching their heads.

Not Sony, though. In an interview with TheStreet.com, Sony of America co-COO Jack Tretton said that the company was "really pleased" with its showing at E3.

"If we were trying to do a PR blitz on our announcements, we would have perceived it a little bit differently," Tretton said. "But we really saw this as an opportunity to announce some very important details to the trade. And I think if you ask the trade, meaning the retail constituency and the third parties, they came away pretty pleased with how everything went."

TheStreet.com's Troy Wolverton asked Tretton about the pricing of the PS3, to which Tretton responded, "Well, I guess if price is the only consideration, then we've won the war, because we've got a $129 PlayStation 2 that outsells the Xbox 360 today." He went on to say that the premium edition of the Xbox 360, priced at $399, "falls well short of what the PlayStation 3 offers at $499."

One of Microsoft's biggest announcements during its pre-E3 press gathering this year was the fact that the next installment of the top-selling Grand Theft Auto series would be coming to the Xbox 360 on its first day of release. Previous editions of GTA were released on the PlayStation 2 before they eventually pulled any Xbox crime sprees.

While Microsoft seems to be making a big deal out of this (see Peter Moore's faux tattoo), Tretton doesn't appear bothered. "There's no question that having the Grand Theft Auto franchise helped us a lot and helped us sell some units, but I don't think the battle would be any different with or without Grand Theft Auto ... I don't think [losing GTA exclusivity] hurts us. ... I really don't."