Here’s some Xbox 360 news for all of you to digest from the last few days. First off, Microsoft reduced prices for the next generation console by as much as 28 percent in Europe on Monday in an effort to increase sales in the area. Price cuts ranged from 18 percent to 28 percent across the three main Xbox 360 versions. On the low end, the Arcade version sells for 200 euros (equivalent to $307 U.S. dollars) and on the high end, the Xbox 360 Elite sells for 370 euros (equivalent to $568 U.S. dollars). In Britain, Microsoft lowered the price of the Xbox 360 from 20 pounds to 50 pounds. You can read more about the price cuts here at News.com.

While price drops in Europe indicate that Microsoft might be a tad bit worried about competition from Sony’s PlayStation 3 console, recent research data shows that the Xbox 360 owns a 42 % share of the next generation market in terms of hardware, games, and peripherals. It has a worldwide install base of 17.7 million units which isn’t too shabby. However it’s important to note that the Wii does have a larger install base – although consumers who own the Xbox 360 also own more games than a comparable Wii system owner.

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