Xbox 360 Elite heads to Japan too… at some point

Following the announcement about the Xbox 360 Elite, Microsoft’s Japan division announced that they will be selling the beefed up HMDI ready Xbox 360 there too, but a date and price for the new 360 SKU has not been set. The 120 GB hard drive (18,900 yen / $160) and the larger 512 MB memory unit (5,775 yen / $50) do have release a date, both will be sold on June 7. The Shivering Isles expansion pack and ll of the high definition video content are legitimate reasons to pay for the 120GB hard drive. However, Japan doesn’t have the Xbox Live video marketplace, so why would any 360 owner in Japan or any other country outside of the US even need the 120 GB hard drive?