In an event that many will view as another nail in the coffin of an ailing system; Sony has indefinitly postponed the launch of it's console in all European and Austrailian territories.

In an interview with Kaz Hirai, the CEO was quoted as saying, "While we regret the loss of two major markets, we believe that the PS3 will be successful enough in the United States and Japan, certainly enough to justify the loss of the European territories".

In the US, the PS3 has failed to catch fire as its predecessor did in 2000. However, Sony believes that this is merely the beginning of a marathon race, rather than a sprint. Seems consumers look at the entire situation in a different light.

An SCEE spokesperson commented, "The reason we went down this route, which has met with a mixed response, is in order to maximise the number of consoles available to the markets we believe hold precedence".

Various Web sites have been offering preorders for the PS3. It is unclear as of now how Sony plans to refund the thousands of disappointed gamers in Europe and Austrailia.