Microsoft Confirms Xbox 360 European Price Cut

Officials from Microsoft have officially confirmed a price cut for the Xbox 360 in Europe, as well as announcing an official price for the Xbox 360 Elite, following similar price drops for the whole range of consoles in the U.S. and Canada. The price drops, due to come into effect on August 24th, are proportionally similar to those in North America with the standard Xbox 360 bundle (previously referred to as the Premium bundle and including a 20GB hard drive) dropping by £30 ($60) to €349.99/£249.99 ($472/$497). The Core bundle, which does not include a hard drive, drops by £20 ($40) to €279.99/£179.99 ($378/$357) – the same price as a Wii console. The Xbox 360 Elite will also launch in Europe on August 24th at €449.99/£299.99 ($607/$596) – less than the £329.99 ($656) that many retailers had initially advertised the console at. The Xbox 360 Elite will include a 120GB hard drive and a HDMI port, although it has recently been confirmed that all non-Core Xbox 360 consoles will eventually include the port as well. New black colored first party peripherals, to match the Xbox 360 Elite, have also been announced with the separately available 120GB hard drive costing €179.99/£129.99 ($258), a black wireless controller €44.99/£32.99 ($66), a black Play & Charge kit €19.99/£14.99 ($30) and a black rechargeable battery pack €14.99/$9.99 ($20). In its press statement, Microsoft claims that the Xbox 360 is the number one console in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) with more than 30 percent of the market and more than 45 percent in the UK, The Netherlands and Sweden. Microsoft also claim the highest software attach rate of any console in Europe with more than 5.5 games sold per console since launch. “Whether it’s our lead in console sales, record-setting games and accessory attach rates or our leading online service, evidence is everywhere that Xbox is thriving,” said Stephen McGill, head of gaming & entertainment, Xbox UK. ”When you combine that momentum with these great-value offerings with our unbeatable Christmas game line-up, it’s clear that Xbox 360 is uniquely placed to take the UK by storm this Christmas.”