Following Sony's price cut for the PS3 in the US, the European wing of the company has told SPOnG that it will be making an announcement with regard to local PS3 pricing this coming Thursday, July 12th.

On May 22nd this year, Sony told everybody, "...currently there are no plans to change current hardware offerings [in North America]."

Today, however, Sony has cut the price of the U.S. price of the PS3 by $100 (£50), and has confirmed that as of August an 80Gb version of the console will be available with a copy of MotorStorm bundled in.

SPOnG asked Sony when we can expect a similar move in the UK and was told by a representative, “I can't comment on that, but we're going to make an announcement on Thursday morning.”

Sony's US announcements will effectively mean that the 60Gb PS3 occupies the market position previously held by the 20Gb model at the $499 (£250) mark, with the 80Gb retailing at $599 (£300) – the old price of the 60Gb model.

It's possible that a UK PS3 price drop may seem underwhelming to some. If it's in line with the US price cut it will mean that Sony's recommended retail price for the 60Gb PS3 drops from £425 to £375, but retailers such as GameStation already sell the console at £399 bundled with a single game.

Commenting on the price cut and new 80Gb version, Jack Tretton, president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA), said, “As we move into the next phase of PS3, it’s important that we continue to evaluate our product line, offering consumers the technology and features that meet their growing needs for new forms of media and the way in which it is delivered. The introduction of the 80GB PS3, the new pricing for the current 60GB model, the availability of more than 100 new software titles this fiscal year and, finally, the expansion of services for PlayStation Network, will provide even more options for users and will help bring new consumers into the PS3 fold.”

"Our initial expectation is that sales should double at a minimum", Tretton told Reuters. "We've gotten our production issues behind us on the PlayStation 3, reaching a position to pass on the savings to consumers, and our attitude is the sooner the better," he added.

Sony's own announcement tells us “By featuring an expanded hard disk drive (HDD), the new 80GB PS3 is designed to appeal to the online gaming and entertainment enthusiast, providing ample storage space to download more games and other entertainment content from PlayStation Network.”

As SPOnG also reported on May 22nd 2007, South Koreans have already received the 80Gb version with deals being made with local broadcasters to provide a video on demand (VOD) to the units. These broadcasters were said to be Hanaro Telecom and KT . A spokesman for the former told the world's press, "We are negotiating with Sony and the atmosphere is pretty good. We hope we will be able to reach an agreement in June."

Therefore, it's more than a fair bet that Sony U.S.'s announcement regarding “other entertainment” and "the expansion of services for PlayStation Network" can be read as “movies”. Could an E3 announcement be on the way? We'll let you know.

In related news, Marks & Spencer appears to have thrown its lot in with Sony, with the PS3 and PSP being the only game hardware and software lines the UK retail giant is carrying.