The 40GB PlayStation 3 has launched in Europe (with a North American debut forthcoming), but its PAL release was threatened to be marred by rumors of hardware failure rates as high as 40 percent. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe has since stepped forward to dismiss such reports, originally stemming from a Dutch gaming website. SCEE's president David Reeves himself saw fit to comment on and dispel the rumors:

We are very proud of the quality and reliability of PlayStation 3 and are disappointed that such extremely sloppy journalism has resulted in this totally inaccurate story.

"Since launching the 40GB PS3, we have experienced a fantastic jump in sales and the failure rates have remained at the very low level that we not only strive for, but have been achieving since the launch of PS3."