One of the most differentiating aspects that Microsoft’s Xbox 360 has managed to hold over its rivals is the contribution of exclusive, downloadable content for various first and third party titles. Indeed, games such as the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV may be coming to both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, but in this case, again, Microsoft has managed to get the upper hand by offering its consumers exclusive episodic content (purportedly secured by the hefty sum of USD 50 million).

Up until now, Sony has been rather quiet as to how the company intends to combat this threat; however, recent comments from Sony Worldwide Studios boss, Phil Harrison, have hinted that the firm appears to have something on the cards, possibly even for the PS3 iteration of GTA IV.

Speaking with 1up.com recently, Harrison commented, “As the head of the [internal Sony] studios, it's hard for me to comment on the third-party relations, so I don't know the details of that -- we deliberately keep those separate -- but we have a great relationship with Rockstar and we're actually working closely with them on a number of initiatives, so I do know some things that are going on, but I'm not able to share those with you now."

Though we can only speculate as to what Sony will come up with, you can be sure that we'll bring you all the latest details as soon as they come to light. Grand Theft Auto IV is scheduled to ship for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 across North America from October 16th.