SONY CUTS PRICE OF PLAYSTATION 2
Copyright 2001 www.tombraiderchronicles.com Source: Reuters

[ September 28th 2001 ]

Customers of Core Designs eagerly awaited rustic adventure Project Eden may well be thinking the delay in launch is a blessing in disguise as Sony slashes the price of its PS2 console in Europe and Australia, Reuters report today.

The Japanese electronics giant confirmed it has cut the retail price of its PlayStation 2 video game player in Europe and Australia by 26 percent to $293. Prices in the U.S. and Japan, where PlayStation 2 was launched last year at $299, were not cut. Sony Computer Entertainment, which is the separately run entity that produces PlayStation, said the lower retail price reflected increased production efficiency in factories in Japan.

When PlayStation 2 was introduced in Britain on 24 November last year, the retail price was $440. In June the price was cut to $396 after criticism from consumer groups that the price was too high compared with the U.S. and Japan. Sony said the PAL television technology used in Europe and Australia is more expensive, and distribution and taxes also explain the initial price differences.

PlayStation 2 (PS2) is the more advanced version of the first PlayStation console that was launched five years ago. The Sony machine will have to compete with powerful new games consoles from Japan's Nintendo, which has a new GameCube, and U.S. Microsoft, which will debut on the games market with X-box. Both devices will hit the European markets early next year.