With the Xbox 360 Experience software upgrade around the corner (well, next month, but still), Microsoft has started the Xbox 360 memory upgrade program for those of you stuck with a Core or Arcade version of the console.

The program will allow owners of the Core version of the console to get a free 512MB memory card, or a 20GB hard drive for a mere US$20, while those with an Arcade version can get a 20GB hard drive and 3 months of Xbox Live for US$30.

This sounds like a cracking deal to us and the really good news is that this deal isn't limited to the U.S., although not all countries seem to have been added to the list as yet. The new Xbox 360 Experience will require 128MB of free memory, so those with an Arcade version will lose out on that much memory on their memory card unless they get a hard drive.

Let's just hope we see a reduction in price of the larger hard drives for those that are considering using the Netflix service, as well, since 20GB isn't really all that much space to store movies on. For everyone else, 20GB should still be more than enough, that is, unless you want to load all your games onto the hard drive for quicker load times.

You can check if you can get the special upgrade deal here by selecting your country from the drop down box.