Submitted by: kirkland on Tuesday February 21st, 2006 at 01:38 PM EST

Sony's stock plunged in Tokyo Monday after the company said the launch of its next-generation PlayStation 3 video game console could be delayed if industry specifications for some of its technology are not final soon.

PS3 will compete with Microsoft's Xbox 360, which went on sale last November, and Nintendo's Revolution, expected later this year.

Sony's shares fell as much as 4.4% on Monday after Merrill Lynch said in a research note last week that the PS3's launch might be delayed six to 12 months and the cost of production could initially approach $900 per unit.

Read more @ USA Today