Microsoft has chopped the price of the Premium and Core Xbox 360 consoles in Australia, The Premium Console is now $579.95 and the Tard Pack (Core) console now at $399.95. Does that number look familiar? It will because its the current SRP of the Wii in Australia (although many retailers are selling it below that). Xbox Australia boss David McLean has said in an interview, “”Since launch we’ve always had a fairly deliberate strategy to secure the hardcore gamers first… but now that we’ve done that job it’s time to expand the market””. Havent we heard something like that before? More Inside The price drop should boost the sales of the console which have fallen over in the last few months. Wii continues to sell at over twice the 360s rate and nearly three times the PS3s rate (so much for it being the best selling). The Xbox 360 remains the current Market leader in Australia for now as seen in the latest sales update below.

Updated Australia Hardware Numbers (from GFK):
X360: 195,056 (+13k from last numbers)
Wii: 138,192 (+31k from last numbers)
PS3: 66,503 (+11k from last numbers)

Dont think its an easy road ahead for Nintendo. With this price drop and a trickle of game titles following Mario Party 8, Nintendo still have challenges to face. Christmas is coming and a $399 Core (while basically useless without accessories) could entice some parents to buy it for little Jimmy.

Source: The Age