The disappointing news that Grand Theft Auto IV has been delayed until the second quarter of 2008 is bound to dent the incomes of both Microsoft and Sony this year, particularly given the massive potential for holiday season sales it would have inevitably brought.

However, Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter explains that the delay is an even bigger blow for Sony, one that might even force the Japanese electronics giant into dropping the price of its PS3 for a second time to compete with its rivals across the coming months. "It hurts Sony this holiday," Pachter told Bloomberg, "maybe this gives them an incentive to cut the PS3 price again."

Anyone with their finger on the gaming pulse will tell you just why GTA IV's absence from the 2007 release schedule is such a major sucker punch to Sony. While its line-up over the coming months is undoubtedly strong (including Lair, Call of Duty 4 and Unreal Tournament 3), it no longer has a true incoming 'killer app' to call its own in comparison to the likes of the Microsoft Xbox 360's Halo 3 or Nintendo's 'holy trinity' of Super Mario Galaxy, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption.

And this latest delay further magnifies the recent push back on Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and leaves the PS3 in desperate need of a true software draw for those customers not sold on the hardware's lofty price.

Surely Sony wouldn't drop the price of their latest next-generation console again, so soon after the last price cut, would they?