'Big PS3 Announcement' Planned For Tuesday

[lɐuǝɯo⊥ǝɥԀ]

Mark this coming Tuesday, March 31, on your calendars -- Sony evidently has something big in store, as SmartHouse reports that the company is set to make a global announcement regarding the PlayStation 3.

Obviously, there are no details about the announcement, because otherwise we wouldn't need to wait for the announcement. But rumors have of course been swirling for some time about a PS3 price drop, with Sony even recently being publicly pressured by third-party publishers to make a price cut on the console soon. Considering that March 31 also happens to mark the end of Sony's current fiscal year, a PS3 price drop announcement wouldn't be unreasonable to expect.
Other possibilities could be a price drop for the PlayStation 2 (perhaps along with a PS3 drop), finally bringing the console to $99. In fact, even a PSP price drop could be possible, in light of all the recent rumblings of a successor (and ahead of the April launch of the DSi).

But as is often the case, we'll just have to wait and see what exactly Sony has in store this Tuesday. Good thing that's only two more days we have to wait...

1UP

[ArJay]

My guess...is the rumored price drop that's been in talks for months now. Especially after that "leaked" gamestop info that "confirmed" a price drop 2 weeks ago. Either it was legit and Sony put it off to fool us, or they finally decided to do it. I'm sure that "leak" hurt their sales enough, what with people holding off expecting the price to drop.

[lɐuǝɯo⊥ǝɥԀ]

NO PLANNED PRICE DROP

Sony has said there are no plans for a PlayStation 3 price drop, and may be trying to temper expectations for tomorrow's planned announcement. Joystiq reports that in an official statement, public relations manager Al De Leon flatly denied any such plans regarding the PlayStation 3. "As we have stated previously, we do not have plans for a PS3 price drop, and any rumors to that effect are false and are the result of speculation," the statement read. "SCEA remains focused on the long-term momentum of the PS3. With the industry's best software lineup this year, combined with our most aggressive marketing campaign to date, we remain confident in our approach and the value we're delivering with PS3."

It's notable that De Leon didn't mention anything about a PS2 price drop, a rumor which seems almost certain to be announced tomorrow. He also didn't comment on anything regarding the PlayStation Portable, which some have speculated will be included in tomorrow's announcement to take some attention from the pending release of the Nintendo DSi.

While it's not uncommon to deny rumors like this, we usually see it done further in advance to protect the current sales. If people expect a price drop in a month or two, system sales might lag in the meantime. Since Sony has an announcement planned for tomorrow, denying now would ultimately be more damaging to their image if a PS3 price drop were in the plans. For that reason the denial seems to be truthful, but we'll know for sure tomorrow. --

1UP