Stringer: 'Actual innovation' and PSN expansion in Sony's future

by Alexander Sliwinski { Dec 11th 2007 at 3:45PM }

After almost three years of restructuring, Sony's über Chief Executive Howard Stringer says the company's "next cycle is actual innovation." Heavy on promise but light on details, Stringer says the PlayStation Network will expand to offer other kinds of content. This is exciting, if only for the fact that if Sony actually puts some major drive behind PSN now and delivers something comparable to Xbox Live, we can finally say goodbye to the competition's yearly fee.

Stringer notes that PS3 sales have become steady since price cuts were announced, a fact aided by constant Wii shortages. It seems 200k machines are now sold weekly in Europe, while 40k to 50k are sold each week in Japan. Poetically, Stringer says that the company has "momentum," which we hope gives Sony the push needed to catch up to what Microsoft has spent years establishing and tweaking with Xbox Live.

Tags: innovation, PSN, sony, stringer, XboxLive

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Fernando Rocker @ Dec 11th 2007 3:49PM

Now, Nintendo should invest a part of the Wii and DS printed money and invest a few millions Nintendo online services.

Vidikron (FU) @ Dec 11th 2007 3:56PM

I wish they would. They are sitting on mountains of cash, but their online services are put together like they gave an intern a weekend to come up with anything workable.

Jeff @ Dec 11th 2007 4:04PM

A drunk, stoned intern, who was extremely paranoid of getting raped by some pokemon-loving old man =P

When you look at it that way, friend-codes seem reasonable...

GoldenS1104 @ Dec 11th 2007 4:10PM

The friend codes are reasonable for family audiences (Nintendo's target audience), but what about the hardcore gamers? I don't see why Nintendo can't provide as much freedom with their online services as Microsoft does, while still providing parental controls that have the potential to limit the online abilities to that of the friend code.

Idiot Face @ Dec 11th 2007 4:20PM

Fernando Rocker will leave this topic for others to comment on and give everyone a break from reading his posts, but then again my name is Idiot Face :-(

B1gC72 @ Dec 11th 2007 8:39PM

@ GoldenS1104

they cant do it because they know that the parents wont take the time or interest in their kids to set up said parental controls but will sue as soon as some kid gets abducted and sodomized. face it, a lot of parents these days just dont take an interest or responsibility for their kids and are always looking to point the finger.

LameDuck @ Dec 11th 2007 8:51PM

Why is friend-codes reasonable for families? Most kids will go looking online for people to play with if they can't find anyone local to play with. A pedofile/rapist/drunken hobo can easly find some kids code online and enter it as well as one of the childs real friends.

Nintendo acts like these type of people are confused by a string of random numbers and letters. "WTF IS THIS?! 24j2-2352-kf93-d2n3m?!?! WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?!?!?!!?!?!?!!??!!?!?!?!?!?! *leaps off a cliff*" Get over it Nintendo and stop using this stupid "protection" scheme. If you really have to have some protection, atleast give us older people a way to play without having to beg for a 16 digit code.

darkeyez @ Dec 11th 2007 3:49PM

I haven't given up on you, yet, Sony! Keep it up you greedy bastards!

FOXHOUND @ Dec 11th 2007 3:55PM

LoL ... +1

Notice the subject of PSN's "home" still hasn't come up since the delay.

Castle @ Dec 11th 2007 5:36PM

Actually, the "innovation" comment was taken out of context; Stringer was referring to the display market and OLEDs, and NOT the console market.

The quote is originally from the Financial Times article, being that there is no room for confusion I'm not sure why its being quoted this way.

FTA:
"The next cycle is actual innovation," said Sir Howard, pointing to the company’s new organic light-emitting diode (OLED) televisions, which are just 3mm thick.

"When you look at OLED, your impulse is to say 'wow'. We need that reaction from people at Sony … it's a statement of confidence, that there is a path to somewhere else," he said."

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/88a70ee6-a7f0-11dc-9485-0000779fd2ac.html?nclick_check=1

samfish @ Dec 11th 2007 3:50PM

Hahaha! That'll be a first!

118 comments.

copa @ Dec 11th 2007 4:17PM

"If Sony actually puts some major drive behind PSN now and delivers something comparable to Xbox Live, we can finally say goodbye to the competition's yearly fee."

That's a double Hahaha! there. You've got it backward. If Sony delivers something comparable to XBox Live, you can finally say goodbye to Sony's free service.

Even before Sony figured out that making a complete online service was a lot more difficult than just promising it, they were throwing out all kinds of qualifiers about how "basic services" would be free (see XBox Live Silver).

They have never intended to invest the kind of cash that Microsoft has into their online service without charging for it.

Zoesch @ Dec 11th 2007 4:45PM

Well, here's the thing if you look at Live, Microsoft's investment is basically on the lobby and content servers. There's no game servers and bandwidth costs associated to it since it's a peer to peer service.

Sony (And the third parties that put out multiplayer games on the PS3) have to cover the costs of the game servers and bandwidth, that means there's no unified lobby system (Which I guess is part of Home) and Sony covers the content servers.

Seeing how Sony actually own content providers they could eventually keep the gaming service free (Or ad supported if rumors of Home in-game advertisement are true) and only charge for content, wild guess of course.

Jason @ Dec 11th 2007 4:49PM

At least with Sony you'll be able to play online with the free subscription.

elpmis @ Dec 11th 2007 3:50PM

This is definitely an article about nothing, but it is good to read more positive "stuff" about PS3.

Hashbrown_Hunter @ Dec 11th 2007 7:44PM

...especially on Joystiq!

ExcaliburUnited007 @ Dec 11th 2007 3:51PM

"Actual innovation"

LOL...does this mean sony is admitting that it has NOT been innovative over the last 10+ years?

As for Live I think the price of Live is worth it.

ColossalHat @ Dec 11th 2007 3:58PM

I think they may be implying that nobody has been innovative, and that they will be the first to be so. Of course, this does mean that you'd have to discount everything Nintendo has ever done, and Xbox and the 360's live service.

Crono (NDF - Knight of the Old School) @ Dec 11th 2007 4:03PM

While the price of live may be "worth it" to you, I've had free online play since the internet with services like battle net, and then the advent of locally hosted games.

For all the adds on xbox live, all the content costs money to download (except demos), and the fact that the games are hosted by the xboxes themselves, there is absolutely no reason for Microsoft to get away with charging money for Live.

The only hope I have is for sony to somehow pull a nintendo and start kicking MS ass as far as online experience goes.

But I'm not holding my breath.

Vidikron (FU) @ Dec 11th 2007 4:08PM

I'm fine with pay for Live at the moment. I think all the seemless integration of all the features is worth it. But if Sony or Nintendo can apply enough pressure to get them to drop the price, I certainly wouldn't be against that.

Although you bring up a good point about the ads. Why is the only pay service the one that also has ads all over the dash?

GoldenS1104 @ Dec 11th 2007 4:18PM

I really hope Sony can manage to pull something off. For one, it would give me a reason to finally get around to getting a PS3 (most of their exclusives thus far don't interest me enough to warrant a purchase). Secondly, it would force Nintendo to get off their asses in the online department, and it would make MS charge less or nothing for their services. It's like the old saying goes, when business compete, the consumer wins (I don't think that's an actual saying... I think I might have just ripped off LendingTree.com's slogan... w/e).

Penguin Warlord @ Dec 11th 2007 4:37PM

@Chrono

The games may be hosted on the xboxes but theres soo much more that go into the xbox live servers. And just to make yourself feel a little better look at the prices for WoW.

SneezyPorcupine @ Dec 13th 2007 11:53AM

K. Im sorry, I am not sure if it is just me who's missing something, since I am using Xbox Live in Canada, where the contents maybe different. But ALL of the ads that I have ever seen on the Xbox Live dashboard have been related to new demos that are out, or prize promotions and stuff that people can get! Every Ad that I have seen on Live has been always related to a product that is also available for Live.

Its not like they are commercializing Viagra or cat food which is practically all you see on television now!

So considering the cost, Live is every bit worth it, because although I do play quite a bit of PC and PS3 games, no other platform comes close to the online experience that Live does FOR ME. I do not enjoy the hassles of having to install and uninstall 15GB games all the time and configure miniscule graphics and sound settings for every game independently on the PC and although PC has the best online service because it is free (and games actually have dedicated servers) I find myself back on the couch playing the 360.

My PS3 has been collecting dust yet again mainly because I have been soured by some recent releases. Now I usually tend to rent new multiplatform games for the PS3 and if I like the idea that the game is getting at, then I purchase it for the 360! Newer games such as the Orange Box SUCKED HARD on the PS3 especially because of the frustrating process of having a decent game in Team Fortress 2.

And this is where the PS3's online really falls short. With no unified friends lists, voice communication and flakey online games, not to mention an overall smaller userbase of people online, I find it difficult to really get into it.

And quite frankly, having to pay $50/year for the kind of service that Microsoft has put together is well worth it in contrast to people who pay insane amounts for single games such as WoW.

Besides, if you think for a second that Sony would not charge for PSN if they come out with a comparable service then, i'm sorry to say it, but ur a fool! If Nintendo, who's literally pissing gold and can burn a billion or two and still be ahead won't improve their services, I don't see why the PS3 with its tight pockets would. Its a wild money grab folks.

Regardless, the PS brand seems too busy trying to establish the new PSPs. All I see on TV r PSP commercials, and read PSP PHONE rumours on Engadget, so frankly, it is as if they are just sinking the PS3 ship behind them, and you know what they say, the Captain (Ken Kutaragi) always goes down with the ship ;)

Kassu @ Dec 11th 2007 3:51PM

200k weekly?
Did he escape from an institution for the mentally handicapped?

jsn @ Dec 11th 2007 3:53PM

what that means is that they've sold "almost" 200k per week in "everywhere but japan and the us" for the last two weeks. To suggest this is a trend that will survive the holidays is...hasty..

ColossalHat @ Dec 11th 2007 3:55PM

The 200k weekly statement depends on when you start your timeline. You could say they've been selling 200k per week for a full two weeks and not be wrong (that is assuming it did sell 200k last week and this week). That's PR for you.

ColossalHat @ Dec 11th 2007 3:51PM

If improvements in PSN will get rid of Xbox Live's fees, I'll be very happy that I can finally quit using that as an excuse to not get a 360. I see nothing bad coming from this, unless Sony turns into uber-pricks and start up "new and improved" pay-per-month platinum accounts.

silkylove @ Dec 11th 2007 4:01PM

Is it just me, or does it really look like there's cobwebs hanging behind the PS3?

darkeyez @ Dec 11th 2007 4:07PM

Well...my PS3 has cobwebs, but it's cuz i'm too lazy to wipe it down and a spider moved into the cubby.

elpmis @ Dec 11th 2007 4:00PM

Sometimes I wonder if all of the negative response to positive Sony news is really insecurity assuring itself that going with another console was the right thing to do.

NOTE: This post will receive 0 hearts.

ColossalHat @ Dec 11th 2007 4:10PM

It's mostly just people jumping on the bandwagon. Just like it's "cool" to hate on Gamestop and nearly every retailer besides Best Buy, it's also "cool" to hate on the PS3. My personal opinion, the few games that the PS3 has that are worth it so far, are worth buying the console for. Besides, where else am I going to play FFXIII and the new team ico game (when both come out)?

copa @ Dec 11th 2007 4:29PM

I think the negative response comes from the fact that we've heard this song and dance before.

Remember how Sony announced they won an Emmy for Innovation for their Sixaxis? Remember how cool that sounded before it turned out they lied?

http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/09/oops-sony-declares-sixaxis-emmy-emmys-say-uh-uh/

Remember how the next generation wouldn't start until Sony said it did? Because its bass-ackward competitors were using dated ideas like rumble controllers (later adopted by PS3) and software backward compatibility (later adopted by PS3)?

Sony is the king of calling themselves innovative, but when it comes to actually delivering something innovative (like Home) they are running a distant third.

So some of us would prefer that they stop with the yappin' and start dropping some cool shit before their ten-year cycle is almost up.

arrrgh @ Dec 11th 2007 4:30PM

like it was "cool" to hate on nintendo for being a joke kid-toy (unreasonably) instead of the the (undoubtedly more coooool) ps2 oh but a few short years ago?

arrrgh @ Dec 11th 2007 4:36PM

like it was "cool" to hate on nintendo for being a joke kid-toy (unreasonably) instead of the the (undoubtedly more coooool) ps2 oh but a few short years ago?

Vidikron (FU) @ Dec 11th 2007 4:43PM

@copa

Ummm... Sony didn't lie about the Sixaxis thing. That was apparently a misunderstanding. They thought the award was for the Sixaxis when it was actually for the original Dual Shock.

why not the LS2/LS7? @ Dec 11th 2007 4:04PM

When PS3 sells it's because Wii is in short supply? Why don't see these stories about 360 sales?

BTW, saying PS3 is selling in Japan because of short supplies of Wii is to ignore that Wii is readily available in Japan.

http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/switch-language/product/B000WN67L6/ref=dp_change_lang?ie=UTF8&language=en%5FJP

Jeff @ Dec 11th 2007 4:07PM

If Home ends up being amazing-- which, I highly doubt, but pray for-- the Playstation network will be a competitor to Xbox live. How awesome would it be if, instead of points, you got trophies? Or money to buy miscellaneous shit with? It'd have the allure of games like the sims, and the "collect the prettishiniez" feel of MMOs.

And then Microsoft would be forced to make Xbox life free, and make something that's already good even more badass. C'mon, fanboys: competition ALWAYS benefits the consumer.

hotnutz @ Dec 11th 2007 6:39PM

>>C'mon, fanboys: competition ALWAYS benefits the >>consumer.

Fanboy != logical

This being a fanboy / semi-news site, this is the wrong place to be preaching peace and cohesiveness. I agree with you but the the people on this site seem to enjoy their jihads.

Ed @ Dec 11th 2007 8:41PM

I know I do!

May your Home burn to the ground!

LilCo187 @ Dec 11th 2007 4:09PM

"...and delivers something comparable to Xbox Live, we can finally say goodbye to the competition's yearly fee."

That would be the win of all wins for this generation of gaming. I'm still baffled as to how ppl fork over the cash for a subscription of online gaming.

Follow me as I picture this wall at the Microsoft HQ in Washington, in the back corner. There's a big docking door on it. A truck pulls up marked "Live Subscriptions" and it's dumping mounds of cash into dumpsters. And those dumpsters sit in the back corner of HQ, never touched. Never needing to be touched.

The Fuzz 53 @ Dec 11th 2007 4:14PM

So he admits they haven't done anything innovative so far?

Synner @ Dec 11th 2007 4:16PM

Too bad you are all forgetting the simple fact that sony's idea of "innovation" is to copy someone else's idea, and repack it in a box with the spiderman font on it.

On that note, is it just me, or could the rest of you totally do without ANY motin controlls on the sixaxis? I only have 3 games for the PS3 (HS, R&C, Motorstorm) But the motion control in all 3 of those is maddening at the worst, irritating at best.

Am I just playing games that have it very poorly implemented?

Vidikron (FU) @ Dec 11th 2007 4:20PM

I find it to be very good in R&C... what didn't you like about it? It's also used very well in Blast Factor (PSN game).

Idiot Face @ Dec 11th 2007 4:36PM

Idiot Face likes to play "twing twang" (HS Reference) using sixax...axisix... yeah that... but it is actually fun

BLinn @ Dec 11th 2007 4:38PM

Internet explorer, xbox, zune... So how is microsoft not guilty of same crimes? If you are happy with your Xbox then why do you have to bash everything that sounds good about the PS3? If something stinks cover your nose, if something looks bad then look the other way, dont stare and scream about how ugly it is, or sniff it and cry about how poisonous it smells.

NOTE: Retards will conclued from my comment that the PS3 stinks and looks bad.