PlayStation Vita Launch: innovation or recreation?

One of the funniest things that happened during the launch of PlayStation Vita was that the PR-lady introduced the new PSP saying: "I played with it last night and just couldn't stop... it really felt great in my hands..." of course all 640 present nerds (me included) laughed out loud (LOL) and clapped their hands. This was one of the highlights of the presentation of Sony PlayStation.

I don't want to make this posting a 'hatemail' because I love the power of PlayStation and really admire Sony, but during the presentation yesterday they tried to highlight ALL product features instead of picking just a few eminent benefits compared to modern smart phones, like the iPhone.
That's what bothered me most I feel. To name one example, PlayStation claimed to 'start the social gaming revolution', but the social gaming revolution has already started thanks to companies like Zynga with all of their 'social' games on Facebook and Spil Games with all of their gameportals around the globe... and to be honest: Battlefield and Call of Duty with all of their multiplayer features are social as well and what about World of Warcraft where you have to slay dragons with hundreds of fellow gamers in epic battles....?

The intentions of the people of PlayStation was not to be arrogant I'm sure, but promoting the fact that the PSVita has a camera on the front and on the back and that it can be connected to the internet seem outdated Unique Selling Points in my opinion since my iPhone has both of these features...
To help you to an insight on the most stunning USP's, I summed them up below in my comparison of the PSVita with my iPhone...

The advantages of PlayStation Vita compared to an iPhone:

+ Compatible with PlayStation 3 content: play anywhere and even play against PS3 players
+ 'Scratch my back' touchscreen controller for innovative gameplay
+ Physical controllers instead of 'just' touch-screen controls.

The downsides of PlayStation Vita compared to my iPhone:

- It's a lot bigger than my iPhone
- Extremely high priced games compared to 90% of all iPhone games
- PSVita was lagging behind and now just caught up instead of setting a new barrier

Other features are Augmented Reality games and motion controlled features, but that's just tech-shizzle and in my opinion seldom ads great fun to my game-experience. The fact that Microsoft has opened up to all programmers in the world also means they cannot think of enough sound and useful applications of the Kinect-technology. I keep saying that the only good example of Augmented Reality is Layers... but of course I am slightly exaggerating... ;-)

So all in all I am really sceptic if Sony's latest toy will be the big hit they need so much... I know great things will happen soon with the Sony Entertainment Network (formally known as the PlayStation Network), but until then - I don't think the PSP Vita will meet Sony's expectations... I guess Nintendo's unique selling point of providing a safe gaming playground for children is why their Nintendo 3DS is still selling so well. They have a clear focused strategy which will probably help them through these tough years of play...

Now, the retail price for the PSVita is € 249,- which is fair I guess, but games will cost you in between 20 and 50 euro's...

Please form your own opinion and check out the promotional video:

PlayStation to become biggest global TV network

After the news end of last year about YouTube dedicated HD TV-channels and Google TV, PlayStation announces that it will rename it's current 'PlayStation Network' to SEN: Sony Entertainment Network. I saw an incredibly cool presentation last week at the 'iMMovator-conference' about connected television where Sony unfolded their plans for 2012 and beyond.

As I predicted in my book 'A Brand New Playground' the 'game consoles' develop into home entertainment systems that are connected to all the content in the world through the internet. The video below shows you how PlayStation was already providing all sorts of content in 2010. It organized consumer content (photo's, music and video's), but was also connected to content providers like Hulu and Mubi (arthouse movies) and loads of other stuff. It's nice to know that currently more than 50% of all PlayStations are connected to the internet, which is about 30 million PlayStations globally...





Now in the near future PlayStation will largely copy Apple's functionalities: the PlayStation will be the core of content that will be accessible by all Sony devices and screens in your household. The cool thing is that they decided to make it an 'open system' based on Android. Hooray for Sony - well done.
Now finally we can access Sony pictures, Sony music and Sony PlayStation content with all kinds of devices and a specially designed remote control with touch screen and a complete abc on the back will help you to navigate through all that content! Sony also promised to deliver full internet access instead of just limited versions of YouTube and Google.

The main difference is that with Google TV on the Sony televisions you can actually watch two layers of content at the same time: internet + television content. Technically these two cannot be integrated as of yet, but the layers are so well integrated that it will feel as 'one' stream of content. The 'older' internet television force you to choose between either 'TV-content' or 'internet content'... the future televisions (connected televisions) will enable you to multitask like you never had before and make your tablet your third screen while sitting on the couch instead of your second screen... ;-)

I will be visiting the release of PlayStation Vita tomorrow where we will hear more undoubtedly!

Meanwhile read some more on the Sony USA website 

Nissan uses game (Grand Turismo) to find talent for their Raceteam!

Maybe you are one of the 90.000 Gran Turismo 5 players that participated in the online cup facilitated by PlayStation and Nissan? If not, you missed a chance of a lifetime if you like cars, tarmac and speed... Nissan introduced their 370Z in GT5 and challenged all players to participate in their cup on a specially designed circuit within the game with the ultimate prize: driving for the Nissan team in the 24 hours of Dubai!

Two young lads (Thomas and Edwin) won the Dutch challenge on the Roosendaal circuit last week and will therefore take part in the European final on Silverstone! How is that for turning virtual experience into real-life action!?

I think Nissan does a great job to promote their brand amongst 90.000 young and eager car lovers and will definitely benefit from this excellent brand promotion!

There were six regions in total, amongst them were: Germany & Austria, France & Switzerland, Great Britain & Ireland, Spain & Portugal and Italy & The Netherlands. Each territory supplies two contestants so a dozen in total (which is 12 people in Holland ;-) will drive the ultimate drive on Silverstone in June!

PlayStation network back online...

RESTORATION OF PLAYSTATION®NETWORK AND QRIOCITY SERVICES BEGINS

Increased Security Measures Implemented Before Service Restoration;

Consumer Data Protection a Full-Time, Company-Wide Commitment

Tokyo, May 15, 2011 – Sony Corporation and Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) announced that Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI, the company) will today begin a phased restoration by region of PlayStation®Network and Qriocity Services.  The phased restoration will be on a country by country basis beginning in the Americas, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Middle East. The first phase of restored services for these countries and regions will include:

·         Sign-in for PlayStation®Network and Qriocity services, including the resetting of passwords

·         Restoration of online game-play across PS3 and PSP

·         Playback rental video content, if within rental period, of PlayStation Network Video Delivery Service on PS3, PSP and MediaGo

·         Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity, for current subscribers, on PS3 and PC

·         Access to 3^rd party services such as Netflix, Hulu, Vudu and MLB.tv

·         ‘Friends’ category on PS3, including Friends List, Chat Functionality, Trophy Comparison, etc

·         PlayStation Home

Increased Security Measures

As the result of a criminal cyber attack on the company’s data-center located in San Diego, California, U.S.A., SNEI shut down the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services on April 20, in order for the company to undergo an investigation and make enhancements to the overall security of the network infrastructure.   Working closely with several respected outside security firms, the company has implemented new and additional security measures that strengthen safeguards against unauthorized activity, and provide consumers with greater protection of their personal information.

The company has made considerable enhancements to the data security, including updating and adding advanced security technologies, additional software monitoring and penetration and vulnerability testing, and increased levels of encryption and additional firewalls.  The company also added a variety of other measures to the network infrastructure including an early-warning system for unusual activity patterns that could signal an attempt to compromise the network.

“I’d like to send my sincere regret for the inconvenience this incident has caused you, and want to thank you all for the kind patience you’ve shown as we worked through the restoration process,” said Kazuo Hirai, Executive Deputy President, Sony Corporation.  “I can't thank you enough for your patience and support during this time. We know even the most loyal customers have been frustrated by this process and are anxious to use their Sony products and services again. We are taking aggressive action at all levels to address the concerns that were raised by this incident, and are making consumer data protection a full-time, company wide commitment.”

“During the past 18 months, we’ve seen a dramatic rise in the volume of cyber attacks, their sophistication and their impact on businesses. Thwarting cyber-crime requires an evolutionary approach to security that is well integrated, reduces risk exposure and improves efficiencies,” said Francis deSouza, Senior Vice President, Enterprise Security Group, Symantec. “Today’s cyber crime attacks are proving to be more covert, more targeted and better organized than those we’ve seen in years past. In working with Sony on the move of their data-center, it’s clear they’re implementing measures to reduce security risks moving forward." 

As an additional measure, Fumiaki Sakai, president of Sony Global Solutions Inc. (SGS), has been appointed acting Chief Information Security Officer of SNEI.  In addition to his current role at SGS, Mr. Sakai, in his role at SNEI, will work to further reinforce overall information security across the company’s network infrastructure.  Mr. Sakai will lead the recruiting effort in finding a new and permanent CISO for SNEI.  As CISO, Mr. Sakai will report to Tim Schaaff, president, SNEI, as well as to Mr. Shinji Hasejima, CIO, Sony Corporation. 

 “While we understand the importance of getting our services back online, we did not rush to do so at the expense of extensively and aggressively testing our enhanced security measures. Our consumers’ safety remains our number one priority,” Hirai continued. “We want to assure our customers that their personal information is being protected with some of the best security technologies available today, so that everyone can feel comfortable enjoying all that PlayStation Network and Qriocity services have to offer.” 

The restoration of the services across the Americas, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Middle East are beginning, and consumers will be able to enjoy some of the online functionality provided by both the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services.  Phased restoration in Japan and other Asian countries and regions will be announced in due course.  The company expects to have the services fully restored by the end of May 2011. 

The company will be offering customers a “Welcome Back” package of services and premium content to all registered PlayStation Network and Qriocity account services. The details of this program will be announced in each region shortly. 

For more information about the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services intrusion and restoration, please visit http://blog.us.playstation.com or http://blog.eu.playstation.com/

PlayStation 3 sells art and arthouse movies

Content is King says John de Mol from Talpa. Talpa and Sanoma Media recently bought three Dutch Television stations (SBS, Net 5 and Veronica).

Content is King has been proven by iTunes. Even though some songs only sell about a thousand times, if your media library consists of hundreds of thousands songs (apps, books, games, podcasts) and you sell them for 1 euro each, you can still make millions! And they are making millions...

Sony's PlayStation Portable was the first device able of playing film, music, games, etc. and since Sony PlayStation 3 was released in 2005 with the same interface and menu they are offering more and more interesting content: for free, trial, light versions, demo's add-ons and full versions of games, music, movies, manage your photo & films and now: buy ART!

I predicted some time ago that it was time to fill flat-screen TV's with art and now Sony is taking the first step to bring art to our households.

Check out 'Studio' a new tool to buy and download art from renowned and new artists like Jonathan Calugi, Rex Crowle, Anthony Burrill, Craig Redmans, Mr. Bingo, Mr. Jago and many more.



More information at: http://www.playstation.com

PlayStation 3 has sold over 50 million units

After the announcement from Sony PlayStation a few months ago that the PlayStation 2 console sold over 150 million times, they reported last week that the PlayStation 3, their latest - and according to some experts last home-play console - sold over 50 million times.

PlayStation Portable (PSP) has sold 68 million units Year to Date...

I guess people are still eager to play!

PlayStation sold 150 million PS2's

Sony Computer Entertainment just announced it sold 150 million PlayStation 2's since the release in March 2000. I still remember this milestone event because I worked for Atari in those days as a product manager and we gave away 5 PlayStations to promote Reflections Driver 2!

The PlayStation 2 could play DVD (where the PlayStation 3 can play Blue Ray) and could even be operated by a USB-mouse and keyboard - handy for Unreal Tournament which came out later that year.

Meanwhile, the past 10 years an impressive 10.000 titles came out for PlayStation 2 and they introduced the Eye-Toy in 2003 - which must have inspired Nintendo for the Wii-control system.

In total, 1,5 Billion games have been sold up to now... that's 10 games on average per PlayStation 2 and 1 game a year per console.

Sony confirms a new handheld PlayStation with touchscreen and 3G

Sony Computer Entertainment just confirmed that it is developing a new PlayStation Portable with touch-screen and 3G network capabilities.

The current name for the device is NGP (Next Generation Portable), but it will be likely to change towards the releasedate end of this year.

Check www.playstation.com/psmeeting2011 for some images of the product. Surprisingly, the design is fairly comparable to the current PlayStation Portable design, but it will have a lot of new functions and amazing technical specifications.

Amongst them are a 16 million color OLED multi touch screen, front and rear camera, dual analog sticks, build in GPS and three-axis compass.

Kellee Santiago: Are Video Games Art?

An inspiring presentation by Kellee Santiago (That Game Company) explaining why games could be considered a form of art. That Game Company developed 'Flower' - a spiritual game if I may say so for PlayStation 3, currently one of the best downloaded game on the PlayStation Network

Gran Turismo 5 Red Bull X1 Prototype Full Reveal w/Gameplay

A perfect example how a brand can benefit from games. In this case, Red Bull decided to develop a virtual Formula 1 car to push boundaries of product innovation in design and speed (or design of speed). The virtual car is a co-production of Red Bull racing and Polyphony Digital, the makers of Gran Turismo 5.

A picture of the X1 car:

Product innovation and Promotion are just two out of the five P's of the marketing mix that benefit from this concept. Red Bull could even make money if they offer the car as DLC (Downloadable Content) for PlayStation 3. This way the investment would be earned back! In that way the P for Place (distribution) also benefits from a great concept!

Way to go Red Bull!

MUBI on PlayStation 3

Independent Films can be watched through PlayStation 3 and share it with your community on Facebook! Cool initiative by Sony!

PlayStation inspired by iPhone games?

We recently received a press release that PlayStation will celebrate their 15 year birthday by bringing 'mini-games' to the PSP-GO and PS3 game portal. Angry birds being one of the featured games (best sold iPhone game these days). They must have read the latest Distimo report where we read that most sold apps for iPhone are games (55% of all applications) whether paid for or free.
As now almost all people on this planet have embraced playing games as a way to spend their leisure time, the gaming industry is more booming than ever and everyone wants a piece of the pie of that MASS leisure gaming market.
After copying the alternative controlling method of the Wii by PlayStation (Move) and Xbox (Kinect) they are apparently looking out to use the iPhone for a fair benchmark and I can't say I blame them! ;-)
iPad and interactive tables will soon take over the 'Parlor-game' market and physical board games seem to have seen their end... so you might want to hold on to your Monopoly, Trivial Pursuit and Catan boards!
Here's a short list of the most popular PlayStation Mini's:  

Studio	Titel
Frima	Young Thor
G5	Supermarket Mania
Laughing Jackal	Cubixx
Pompom	Alien Zombie Death
Mediatonic	Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess
Beatshapers	Carnivores
Halfbrick	Blast Off
Slitherine	ICE ROAD TRUCKERS
Game Atelier	Flying Hamster
TikGames	Rocks N'Rockets

Officially new Gran Turismo 5 Trailer 2010 HD

Stunning graphics!

And loads and loads of in-game branding!

PlayStation Move conquers Amsterdam City-life

A giant moving PlayStation Move controller shook up Amsterdam City this week. The device was actually moving through the streets of Amsterdam. People that took a picture and uploaded it to the website www.room299.com could win great PlayStation prizes.

Flower™ - Official Trailer

I haven't posted this before, because I am still arguing if this is a game, but Flower could at least be described as visual yoga....? For that reason it could easily contribute to objectives on personnel (staff) - to inspire and relax your employees during busy days at work. If you're running out of time because of too much work, play Flower for 10 to 15 minutes and your effectiveness will surely improve after playing.

Sony Press Conference, Part 1 - E3 2010

The future of gaming according to Sony PlayStation...

Mirror's Edge

It's stunning!

a game about free running...

Oddworld Abe's Odyssey - Opening sequence

Guess where the 'Oddworld' Coke Commercials behind the coke-dispenser came from? Lorne Lanning (director of the Abe's Oddworld series)?

PlayStation Home had 10 Million unique visitors in 2009

PlayStation reports 10 million visitors to their virtual world 'Home'. Apart from that they plan to install an MMO portal (massive multiplayer online) to facilitate playing games through the Sony network (and PlayStation servers of course). They must be working on new business models like paid servers, monthly subscriptions, video on demand and micro transactions in MMO. If you like to see a case about Micro transactions check this website: BrandNewGame

Check CASE: "Diesel Store in PlayStation Home".

For more about Sony PlayStation & Home follow the link below.

PR Newswire

Sony PlayStation 3 Commercial - Kubik

And this is where we are now... Rubik's magic versus PS3 ;-)