Source: A research note from Wall Street firm Lazard Capital Markets.

　　The official story: Sony had not responded to requests for comments as of press time.

　　What we heard: Toward the end of last year, many analysts were convinced that Sony would drop the price of the PlayStation 2 to $129 or even $99 to blunt the launch of the Xbox 360. As it turns out, that didn't happen. Year-on-year sales of the console rose 10 percent during the Holiday 2005 season, thanks to frustrated shoppers settling when they couldn't find an elusive Xbox 360. (The rise was also due to the fact that the PS2 was in short supply during Q4 2004.)

　　Still, rumors of an even-cheaper PS2 resurfaced today, thanks to the aforementioned Lazard Capital Markets report. Its author is Colin Sebastian, a senior game-industry analyst who is as well-respected--if not as publicly visible--as Wedbush Morgan's omnipresent Michael Pachter.

　　In his note, Sebastian says that a PS2 price cut could be just weeks away. "Our industry checks indicate that Sony is planning to cut the PS2 price to $129 from the current $149 before the end of this month," he wrote.

　　So is a PS2 price cut in the offing? Sony isn't saying. The last official word on the matter came at last month's PlayStation Business Briefing in Tokyo, when Sony Computer Entertainment president Ken Kutaragi said the company had no plans to drop the PS2's current price of $149 in the US.

　　However, given that the PlayStation Business Briefing was called to revise another of Kutaragi's proclamations--that the PlayStation 3 would launch in Spring 2006--it's plausible that Sony's tune could change. The company also has some wiggle room--while Microsoft loses an estimated $126 on every Xbox 360 sold, Sony reportedly makes money on each unit of the new slimline PS2.

　　But even if a PS2 price cut doesn't happen this month, Sebastian is convinced one will come eventually, given Sony's desire to extend its current-generation console's life cycle. "In our opinion, hardware price cuts are necessary not only to drive demand at the end of a console cycle, but also to bring the current-generation consoles within reach of more value-oriented customers," he wrote. He also says a $99 PS2 is "likely" in 2007.

　　Bogus or not bogus?: Eventually not bogus, but for now analyst speculation is just that--speculation.