Xbox 360 HD DVD add-on price cut by $20

Players will come with five free movies through Sept. 30

By Jennifer Netherby -- Video Business, 7/26/2007

JULY 26 | Microsoft will knock $20 off the price of its HD DVD drive for the Xbox 360 and offer five free HD DVD movies as part of a new promotion starting Aug. 1, the company announced Thursday at Comic-Con International.

The add-on players will now be priced at $179, and those who purchase the boxes between Aug. 1 and Sept. 30 get a choice of five free HD DVDs as an extension of Toshiba’s “Perfect Offer” promotion of five free movies.

The price cut came a day after Target said it would carry Blu-ray Disc set-top players exclusively in stores. The chain does carry the Xbox 360 HD DVD add-on.

Microsoft also said it will offer Warner Home Video’s 300 and Universal Studios Home Entertainment’s Heroes: Season 1 as a high-definition download through the Xbox Live Marketplace.

300, which debuts on DVD, HD DVD and Blu-ray on July 31, will debut on Xbox Live Aug. 14.

The pilot episode of Heroes will be available as a free download on Xbox Live prior to the Aug. 28 full season release on DVD and HD DVD. Trailers and other promotional materials will be available on the site to promote the disc releases.

“From the beginning, we set out to offer Xbox 360 owners an unrivaled high-definition experience, with a choice of optical discs on the HD DVD format and digital downloads through Xbox Live Marketplace -- both of which have a selection of the best content Hollywood has to offer,” said Jeff Bell, Microsoft corporate VP of global marketing, interactive entertainment business and entertainment and devices division.