Sony buckles, slashes PS3 prices in Japan

Stan Beer
Friday, 22 September 2006 14:35

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Japanese electronics giant has buckled under the pricing pressure applied by rivals Microsoft and Nintendo, announcing a 17% price cut for the Japanese release of its PlayStation 3 console on November 11.

• Announcements

At today's exchange rates, the lower end 20 GB version of PS3 will go on sale in Japan for about US$429 (49,980 yen) instead of the original US$514 (59,800 yen).

The new pricing will keep the PS3 at considerably higher prices than the basic Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii consoles. However, the low end PS3 will be similarly priced to the combination of Xbox 360 plus the recently announced plug-in HD DVD drive which will retail in Japan for about US$170.

While Sony has not announced new PS3 pricing for the US yet, price cuts are expected to follow suit for the November 17 US release.