Sony is expected to cut the price of its popular PlayStation 2 video game console by 13.4 percent before the end of the month, Lazard Capital Markets analyst Colin Sebastian said on Wednesday. "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," Sebastian said in a client note.

A Sony spokeswoman declined to comment.

Analysts have been waiting for a price reduction on Sony's market-leading video game console ahead of the expected release of its new PlayStation 3 in November.

In the past, such price cuts have helped reignite stagnating console and game sales. The video game industry is currently suffering through a rocky transition to next-generation console technology that has stalled sales.

Sony last cut the price on its stand-alone PS2 to $149 from $179 in June 2004. To date, the company's worldwide PS2 shipments have topped 101 million units. Sebastian added that Microsoft could also trim the price on its Xbox game console, but said the impact of that would be limited due to dwindling supplies of the company's first game machine that now sells for around $149.

Microsoft launched its next-generation Xbox 360 console in November. The more popular premium system retails for $400.