"Sony has for the first time given some genuine hints on possible pricing strategy of their upcoming gaming console Playstation 3. With Microsoft launching their Xbox 360 today, it became important for the entertainment giant to give some hints to the consumers on what they would have to pay for Sony Playstation 3 gaming console due to be launched sometime next year.

Sony CEO Howard Stringer stated in a comment that the Playstation 3 would enter the market at between $300 and $400 when it arrives in mid-2006. He was talking to the FORTUNE magazine when he confirmed that Sony would indeed be shipping the initial deliveries of their Playstation 3 console at massive subsidized rates to get the consumers to their gaming console.

They also want to get their self-developed next generation DVD format, the Blu-Ray disc popular in to the market and are including the drives with their Sony Playstation 3 console. This quashes any rumors in the market which claimed that the Sony Playstation 3 would be significantly expensive than Xbox 360 because of the additional costs of the included Blu-Ray drive.

Stinger however did not reveal any specific launch period for the PS3 though he mentioned that the console would ship with a bundle of games, movies and TV shows. This move is to showcase the capabilities of their new generation console. Microsoft on their part has shown interests in supporting the Blu-Ray competing standard HD DVD being developed by Toshiba. The Xbox 360 units being shipped right now however comes installed with a standard DVD drive." [link]