at 16:24 on September 20, 2006, EST.
By HANS GREIMEL

TOKYO (AP) - Microsoft Corp. is introducing an external high-definition DVD player for the Xbox 360 video game console to match the Blu-ray disc functions of Sony Corp.'s upcoming PlayStation 3. The software maker also announced Wednesday it will launch the Xbox 360 in India this week and in Africa next week.

The rollout plans come as the company tries to shore up sales ahead of the arrival later this year of next-generation machines by its two top rivals - Sony and Nintendo Co.

The basic Xbox 360 doesn't come with high-definition DVD capability. The new Microsoft peripheral, to be launched in Japan on Nov. 22, is based on the HD-DVD standard, a rival technology to the Blu-ray format Sony is using for the HD player built into its anxiously awaited upgrade to the PlayStation line.

The attachment will cost US$170 in Japan, bringing the combined cost of the basic Xbox 360 and the HD-DVD player to nearly the same price as that anticipated for the PlayStation 3 in Japan.

In choosing Japan for the launch of the HD-DVD add-on, Microsoft is testing a market that is one of the world's biggest but holds a deep allegiance to homegrown Sony. Microsoft has plans to release the HD-DVD elsewhere, but no specifics about other markets or timing were disclosed.

Microsoft has been looking for ways to boost sluggish sales in Japan. Earlier this month, the company's Japanese unit said it was set to release a cheaper, bare-bones version of the Xbox 360 to boost flagging sales ahead of the PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's new Wii system.

The low-end version, already sold in some parts of the world as the Xbox 360 Core System, will be released Nov. 2 and priced at US$256 - $86 less than its standard version.

As of earlier this month, just 158,000 units of the Xbox 360 had been sold in Japan since its release late last year, according to Enterbrain Inc., a market researcher. About five million units have been sold worldwide in the same time period.

Microsoft also said there will be 110 game titles available for the Xbox 360 in Japan by year's end, addressing a common complaint by video fans who said PlayStation offered more choices.

Nintendo said last week its new Wii game console will arrive on schedule in the final quarter of the year, priced below both rivals, the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3.


©The Canadian Press, 2006

hmm this is all turning out to ve very interesting