Ultrabooks may receive a price cut thanks to Intel marketing subsidy

[[Update: Fudzilla is reporting that DigiTimes' account is incorrect, and an Intel rep has confirmed that no $100 marketing subsidy for Ultrabook exists.]]

The future appears bright for Ultrabooks, but that's once Intel's new laptop platform emerges from a few birth pangs, primarily related to pricing. The chip giant hopes to smooth things out a bit with a $100 marketing subsidy to Ultrabook vendors that will help keep prices lower than $1,000, according to DigiTimes.

DigiTimes had previously reported that Intel had provided marketing incentives to notebook manufacturers to get them on board for the Ultrabook roll out, but it's been difficult for them to keep costs down and margins up. While some models have launched above the magic $1,000 price point, others are coming in closer to $800 (with lesser specs, of course). An easy way to knock off $100 will help drop prices even lower, and Acer predicts that it will be able to slice another 20 percent from its average Ultrabook price by the second quarter of 2012.

If laptop vendors can corral Ultrabook prices so that a well-configured model can cost $300 or $400 less than a MacBook Air (the Ultrabook inspiration), Intel's platform could provide a very viable alternative. Though it's still doubtful that it would be enough to make Apple actually lower prices on its laptops.