PS3 "bonus" bundle offer to end on August 31 in Australia

The PlayStation 3 "starter pack" offer--which sees a 60GB PS3 bundled with two controllers and two games in PAL territories--will end in Australia on August 31, less than a month after it was first launched locally.

At this year's E3, Sony made a big splash about cutting the price on the 60GB model of the PlayStation 3, as well as the introduction of a new 80GB model to the North American market. Unfortunately for those in Europe and Australia, the price cut was restricted to the US only; instead of a reduction, gamers in PAL territories were given a new starter pack. That wasn't the end of it, however, because less than a day later, Sony Computer Entertainment president and group CEO Kaz Hirai confirmed that the 60GB PS3 was, in actuality, no longer in production, and that the 80GB PS3 would soon be the only SKU on offer in the US. This left PAL gamers up in the air about exactly how long the starter pack would be available, and when or if the 80GB model would soon supersede it in their territories.

A marketing e-mail sent to members of PlayStation's official web site in Australia over the weekend gave out some hints on the fate of the 60GB PS3. The e-mail--which was plugging the local availability of the starter pack--contained some extra details in the fine print, namely that that offer would "end on August 31 (or earlier, while stocks last)." In Australia, the PS3 Starter Pack only became available on August 2, and retails for A$999.95. The pack includes MotorStorm and Resistance: Fall of Man as the two bundled games. The same pack is available in the UK/Europe for £425/599 euro.

Local Sony reps confirmed that the date details in the e-mail were correct, but declined to elaborate on what would replace the current starter pack offer, come the end of August.