Sony is planning to announce a price drop for the PlayStation 3 during its press briefing at GamesCom, reports MCV. If rumors are true, the August event in Cologne, Germany will see the system drop to as low as £179.99. In 2009, Sony announced the PlayStation 3 Slim and a price drop at GamesCom, so there's precedent for using the event to drop the price. But the rumor springs from industry expectations and retailer hopes, so it's anything but set in stone.

Comparison to pricing in North America is difficult, since the prices don't directly compare. The PS3 currently starts at £255 in Europe, which converts to over $400 according to current estimates. The actual price here, of course, starts at just $299.99. So while an aggressive drop to £179.99 would literally be about $288, a more likely North American figure is between $200-250. That is, if the price drop comes across the pond, and if the rumor is accurate to start with.

Nintendo recently cut the Wii price to $149.99, which was widely interpreted as a strategic move ahead of its Wii U unveiling. Sony probably isn't nearly as ready to launch the PlayStation 4, but price cuts provide a nice sales boost regardless. The report also speculates that, if true, Microsoft could respond with its own Xbox 360 price drop by the end of the year.