Retail channels in the Taiwan market are clearing out existing Xbox inventories through price cuts or bundling it with free software to pave the way for the scheduled March 2 launch of the Xbox 360, according to local industry sources. Yahoo Taiwan’s online shopping site has reduced its price for an Xbox console from NT$5,888 (US$184) to NT$3,990 (US$125), the sources indicated. PChome Online, another on-line shopping site, currently sells Xbox consoles bundled with five games for NT$6,499 (US$203), the sources noted. Since the cost of an Xbox console is about NT$6,000 (US$190), part of the loss due to price cuts is covered by a subsidy from Microsoft Taiwan while the remainder is borne by retail channels, the sources pointed out.
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