Sony: No PS3 price cut this year

Sony Computer Entertainment president Kaz Hirai has reiterated Sony's commitment to the current set of PlayStation 3 price points for the rest of this year, insisting that the platform is a "very good value proposition".

"The answer is yes, if you're asking, 'Are these the prices we're going with this Christmas?'" he told the FT. "When you really compare apples to apples, then I think we have a very good value proposition."

While the PlayStation 3 has always been positioned as a premium product, console sales will be under pressure following the recent Xbox 360 price cut, and any possible consumer reaction to the global financial downturn, with this Christmas seen as a key point in the Sony hardware's life cycle.

But Hirai remains confident that the videogames business will buck the current market difficulties: "As long as we can generate excitement, then we will be less affected than other industries," he said, although he did concede that "we're getting to the point where price becomes more important".

The Tokyo-based company opted to add more value to the existing price points in Japan last week with the announcement that it would ship 80GB consoles with a free game for the same amount as the 40GB SKU sold for previously - JPY 39,980 (USD 397).