PSN survey hints at upcoming subscription-based features

by Mike Schramm on Jan 6th 2010 6:00PM

Sony's European team has sent out a survey to some of its UK PSN members asking them yet again about possible subscription models for the service. The survey is run by a market research company called Ipsos, and appears to offer up a list of possible member benefits for a few different plan tiers, along with pricing for each. The benefits range from more tame ideas like exclusive and early access to content to more interesting options like "free title trials" (first hour of a game for free), user-to-user challenges, "token wagering" and a service called "catch-up TV." Oh, and since it's Sony we're talking about, there's even a listed option for "cloud storage space for games." You can find the full list of possible features after the jump.

The price options differ from plan to plan, but they go as cheap as £2.99 (about $5 U.S.) up to £14.99 (about $25) for monthly fees, with annual fees also listed for 55% less than you'd pay month to month (so around £19.99 up to £99.99, or $32 to $160). Note that just because all of these things are on a survey doesn't mean that Sony has them up and running -- it only means that they're testing the water in terms of what UK members are willing to pay for certain features. But you can just add this to the growing mountain of evidence that Sony is planning some sort of premium subscription service.

[Thanks Marc and everyone who sent this in!]

Customer Service Priority Access
Exclusive Experiences with Sony brands
Extended Console Warranty 3 years
Access to Beta Games
Early Access to Store Game Demos
Early Access to All Store Content
Member Demo Sharing of Full Game
Cross-game Voice Chat Access
Full Title Trial - 1st Hour is Free
Token Wagering
User-to-user challenges
Free Access to PSOne Classics, PSP Minis, and PS3/PSP Themes
Discounts on Store Content
Member Only In-game Content
Trophy Alerts
Cloud Storage Space for Games
Online Music Service
Automatic Downloads and Updates
Loyalty Program Rewards
Facebook Connectivity
Catch-up TV
Online Video Subscription Service

Tags: cloud-storage, european, evidence, features, free-title-trials, games, ipsos, marketing, network, pounds, pricing, psn, research, scee, service, sony, Sony-Computer-Entertainment-Europe, subscription, tiers, uk

Reader Comments (118)

I took that survey. I hope you guys like paying 70$ a month for Trophy Alerts and Cross-game Voice Chat Access.

Yeah, 2 of my favorite things that I would gladly pay 840$ a year for.

wouldn't it be $70 a year not a month

There were a couple options for monthly fees, but nothing @ 70$.

@Troll
"There were a couple options for monthly fees, but nothing @ 70$."

No, but you are.

Really? I didn't know that Troll was $70

Good Comeback man

Cross game voice chat better be free, it has been promised forever.

Since when has it been promised? Why should it be free, when Microsoft charge for it, and everyone is happy to pay Microsoft recurring money?

In short, the br@inless idi0ts that have made it the norm by paying for services to Microsoft, are the ones that ruined it for everyone else.

Sony have however said that what we get now, will remain free, so online gaming and party chat and stuff will remain free on PS3. Which is still more than Xb0tch owners get.

And the fact that you would only be able to chat with other subscribed users.

at launch they said PSN will offer everything XBL currently offers, but for free. Cross-game voice chat was a feature that XBL offered.

I already paid for a console with cross-game voice chat, and have yet to receive it.

I hope they never come out with that crap, that's why ppl has cellphones nowdays

Well that's a lot of bandwidth to offer for free. Wouldn't be surprised if you had to pay for it.

Cross-game chat will be a paid service. You are in denial now, but you will soon progress to depression, then acceptance.

So let's look at the New World Order:

Online play is free on the PS3, but will continue to be a paid service on the XBox.

Cross-game chat, a 3-year warranty, and automatic downloads/updates are free on the XBox, but will be a paid service on the PS3.

Paid services on both consoles will include:
Facebook
Disk-free Netflix
Last.fm or Pandora

It looks like Sony will also be offering a more expensive service tier, which will likely include:
Free PSOne Classics, PSP Minis, PSP Themes
1-Hour Demos
Video Subscription
Catch-up TV

Oh, and if you've never used XBox Live before, here's a word to the wise: Paid subscribers will NOT be getting Early Access to game demos and other free store content. Instead, what will happen is users who do not purchase a PSN subscription will be getting Late Access to all of those features.

Coopa you are wrong. Sony would never charge for it since they promised us they wouldn't. We arent going to be suckered into paying for something that is going to be free!

@copa

"Cross-game chat, a 3-year warranty, and automatic downloads/updates are free on the XBox, but will be a paid service on the PS3."

Thought the 3 year warranty on the XBox was just for RROD. As for the automatic downloads and updates, the 360 doesn't have this. They aren't talking about firmware updates. What I am hoping that they are hinting at is automatic updates to all of my games. So, if an update to Uncharted 2 is released, my PS3 will grab it automatically instead of waiting for me to put the disc in.

Using Pandora on the web browser is just as easy as it would be from the XMB. Charging for it would be retarded.

so 360 users get cross game chat for free, but they have to pay for online gaming. I'd rather have online gaming free, and cross game chat as an extra. Though, I have both systems now, so only time will tel if I actually regularly pay for either.

so long as it means better online offers, im game.

I'll take the 3 year warranty, free PS1 classics and such, and a discount on store content. The freebies and discounts are worth 35 a year to me.

I keep trying to look for a video that had Eric Lampel in it. In that interview he said that Sony was looking to charge for PSN, but it would at that time remain free.

Do you remember seeing it?

I didnt know paying a fee for content translated to "free" these days.

I was under the impression it was more like $70 annually
if its only $35 you can count me in!

I wont be subscribing, all those are just extras, I only want to play online and download the occasional PSN game and i'm glad those are free.

I took the survey and saw the option for £99.99 anually?! what the hell were they smoking

Probably the same stuff as the Xbox Live users.

TBH, I would pay additional for things like storage, and exclusive content. It'll help Sony to secure those exclusives, and remain profitable.

* Also, I'm hoping ad-free.

Yeah, I'm tired of games having to be downgraded so they can work on the 360. More exclusives the better for Sony.

@ Newguy

Most games are made on the 360 then ported to PS3, mainly because it is easier to code on the 360 plus there is a an extremly small difference to multi-platform games, for this reason.

Look at valve, they are PC game developers and the coding is similar to what the 360 has, that's why you probably won't see any/ever see a valve game on the PS3 (The Orange box for the PS3 was ported by EA, not valve)

Free PSOne Classics, Cross-game voice chat, store discounts and Member Online In-game content . . . I definitely wouldn't mind those.

I'm curious about this 'Token Wagering', though, and if those would equate to PSN benefits.

Yeah, I'm really curious as to what "token wagering" is. Possibly some sort of gambling/betting idea? I know there was a company a couple years ago that ran as a third party and allowed betting between matches for Halo and Madden and some other games. I'd love to play something like 'High Stakes Poker' or maybe even CoD:MW2 for money with people. Make it much more interesting. I would find it hard to believe that Sony would do such a thing though.

I hope it STAYS for premium content only, free online gaming is the way it should be.

I hope everyone that is taking these surveys complain about the pricing,
because right I say a big NO THANKS to this

Catch-up TV
Full Title Trial - 1st Hour is Free
Free Access to PSOne Classics, PSP Minis, and PS3/PSP Themes
Cloud Storage Space for Games

I HATE YOU :(

I agree, fine sir, I don't want to be nickel and dimed again (Xbox Live).

Joystiq just now posted this? I would like Cloud saves. Anything around $30/year is ok, as long as the features are awesome.

All well and good, but I'm getting increasingly concerned with how they're grouping certain features together.

Instead of grouping those relevant to each other, it seems like they're just randomizing them. I think they should focus them on certain groups.
Like Games, Comics, Movies, Social (facebook) etc

When they say "Early access to all psn store content", does "all" mean "region free"? Because if so that would be sweet! No more waiting on the ps1 classics to finally get their arse over on to the UK store, (or US etc)

Would pay for: Cloud Saves, Free Classics access, User Challenges and Wagering.

Everything else should be free. ESPECIALLY Cross Game Chat. Come on.

Good thing they are noting that everything that is free now would remain free.

I...feel like I've been here before...

PSN, don't do this. Please. You're the only one that has free, usable internet play.

Don't make us subscribe for the good stuff.

I beg you.

You took the words out of my mouth. If Sony did this, then they would be going down the dirty, ugly path. I would be so, so disappointed.

Just to catch you up to speed, everything that is now free is staying free.

This is just if you want extra icing on an already delicious cake!

and, and they need money

"You're the only one that has free, usable internet play"

And they still will. I don't understand what your issue is. Why can't they offer extra stuff that not everybody would be interested in for a price?

they took our jobs

Sony fanboys claimed psn was better than live for the simple fact that it was free. Now that they might charge for "premium" features what is their excuse now?

THEY TOOK OUR JOBS!

@xbox420king

you misinformed fool,
its still and will remain free, same excuse

TOOK ERR JERBS!

DURKA DURR! >.

@ xbox420king - I really hope that name isn't your gamertag as well. You would have been better suited with xXxlil420killa666kingxXx.

Granger that's the tag he uses when he wants to use a low level dude in Halo and just pwn noobz all day.

@Granger
No its okay im not a wanna be online thug or an emo goth poser either. I'm a regular pot smoking gamer and yes it is my real gamer tag. I dont need a million X's on my tag to feel cool or put anything so foolish as 666.

Nah, that would be mLgoUtBRxXxlil420killa666kingxXx.

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PSN survey hints at upcoming subscription-based features

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