Sony is to introduce a Blu-ray player priced at $599 USD, the same price as a 60GB PlayStation 3 console in the US.
The BDP-S300 will comes with all the same bells and whistles as its more expensive Blu-ray players, only now you won't have to re-mortgage your house to get one underneath your telly.
Already there's plenty of hustle and bustle on the internet asking how this new player will affect already-criticised PS3 sales. The console was always thought of as somewhat of a Trojan horse for the Blu-ray format, and now it's no longer the cheapest way for consumers to play the high-def disc format.
Our colleagues at Next-Gen.biz received a response from Sony Computer Entertainment America's PR boss Dave Karraker, who argued that the PS3 was always about high-def games and not movies.
"Yesterday's announcement from Sony broadens options for movie lovers and will help to further expand Blu-ray adoption, so it is a benefit to consumers and the company," he said. "Our research shows that the number-one purchase driver for the PS3 is the ability to play high-definition, next-generation games. PS3 has always been about gaming first and foremost."
We'll find out if Sony's right when the BDP-S300 Blu-ray player arrives this summer.