By Michael White
Jan. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Sony Corp., the world's biggest maker of video-game players, will charge Europeans as much as $836 for a PlayStation 3 when the console debuts in March, more than consumers in the U.S. or Japan are paying.
Sony is ``working toward'' having 1 million consoles in Europe by the March 23 release date, Kimberly Otzman, spokeswoman for Sony Computer Entertainment America, said.
Consumers in Europe, Australia and New Zealand will pay the most. The console with a 60-gigabyte hard drive will cost 425 pounds ($836) in the U.K. and 599 euros ($776) in other European countries, Sony's London-based European entertainment division said today in a statement. That's more than the $599 U.S. price and 59,980 ($497) in Japan for the model with the most capacity.
``It is expensive and I'm interested to see if they move all those million units right away,'' said John Broady, an analyst at San Francisco-based Gamespot.com, which tracks sales. ``It's a reminder that this is an expensive system.''
Australians will be charged A$999.95 ($780) for the large machine and New Zealanders NZ$1,199.95 ($840), based on prices set in Sony's statement.
Shares of Tokyo-based Sony gained 2 percent to 5,740 yen as of 1:58 p.m. on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. They have gained 16 percent in the past 12 months.
European Delay
In the U.S., sales have trailed those of Nintendo Co.'s $250 Wii console, which features a motion-sensor remote control.
Sony last year bowed to protests and lowered the price in Japan for the least expensive system to 49,980 yen ($425).
The European release was delayed by four months to March because parts for the console's Blu-ray disc player were in short supply. Sony overcame early stumbles and said on Jan. 8 that it reached its goal of shipping 1 million PlayStation 3 units to the U.S. by the end of 2006.
The Blu-ray player can be used to play games and to watch movies in high-definition format.
The 1 million-unit target for Europe suggests that Sony has overcome the glitches that limited supply at the console's Nov. 17 U.S. start, Broady said.
``They had some real stumbles at launch in the U.S.,'' Broady said. ``It's an impressive feat to have 1 million units ready for Europe.''
Initially, Sony won't offer a 20-gigabyte PlayStation 3 in Europe. That version sells for $499 in the U.S. Introduction of the low-end model later in the year is dependent on demand, Sony said. More than 30 game titles will be available during the launch, the company said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Michael White in Los Angeles at Mwhite8@bloomberg.net
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