British buyers may only be offered the 60GB version of Sony's PlayStation 3, a senior company official has suggested. If so, the comments from the head of Sony Computer Entertainment's UK operation, Ray Maguire, appear to confirm speculation that the 20GB PS3 will not be released here officially.

In an interview with UK games industry weekly MCV, Macguire said: "The lower-end, 20GB version of [the] PlayStation 3 has no Wi-Fi, no HDMI and none of the other slots in it, so it's really a question of where we would position it. It's more likely that we will only launch the 60GB version."

Macguire hit the headlines last week when he was quoted as saying the 60GB model will be priced at around £425 when it arrives in the UK on 17 November. His latest comments imply that amount is far from settled.

"We have time to watch the yen and be flexible, but that 60GB version looks like £425 in the UK at the moment," Macguire told MCV. "High trade margins in the UK are likely to see it come in with that kind of street price, though it's ultimately up to retailers."

He also suggested the HDMI-equipped machine could help retailers move more HD TV products on the back of it. The implication here is that there's room for enterprising retailers to bring the price down by selling higher ticket items on the back of the next-generation console.

Macguire reiterated his viewpoint that the 60GB PS3's price tag is not one intended to appeal to the mass market but was more geared toward early adopters. ®