Microsoft cuts Japanese Xbox prices

1 September 2008 11:18am

Prices of the Xbox 360 video game are to be slashed in Japan as its maker Microsoft fights back against rivals.

The cheapest of three models, Xbox 360 Arcade, will cost around £100 from next week, 30% cheaper.

Nintendo's Wii costs £120 and Sony's PlayStation 3 model sold in Japan, which has a 40-gigabyte hard drive, is about £190.

"We have set the prices with hopes more people will be able to enjoy Xbox 360," said a Microsoft spokesman.

The Xbox 360 has faced tough competition in next-generation gaming machines in the home market of Nintendo, which has been recording booming sales of its Wii, as well as Sony, which makes the PlayStation 3.

Analysts say offering popular game software is critical to making any machine a hit. Microsoft has been wooing talented Japanese game designers to make exclusive hit games for Xbox 360 for years.

But the effort is risky because fancy games require money and time. And so star designers are apt to prefer widespread consoles.

Microsoft will not say how many of the 20 million Xbox 360 machines sold worldwide were in Japan, but it is widely viewed to be fewer than numbers sold elsewhere.

The Wii console has been popular, selling 29.6 million worldwide so far. PS3 sales have lagged at fewer than half of the Wii at 14.4 million.

© The Press Association