Sony Losing Money on PSP, PS3

[gorfias]

It's not exactly rocket science. The companies should know what they're doing wrong. ....

The real question is, will the Wii U break that trend, or make it worse? The fact that they've refused to give a price for the console is significantly worrying.

I think the Wii U is a fad. I want a controller as similar to the 360 as possible. It is the best I've ever had.

Nintendo will see a bump, and then nothing.

I think the market is saturated with current gen. Great for consumers, tough on them. Even the Ouya is coming. $100 and play near current gen games on a $100 console. I just bought more than I'll ever play in Steam's Summer PC sales. I got hundreds of bucks worth of games for about $50. I got Portal 1 & 2 for a total of $7ish. My buddy spend at least $30 on Portal 2 alone.

To shake things up for consoles, we need a new generation. About the only thing that would make me spend $60 on a new FPS is if it is on a new gen console, which I think too many other people are thinking.

So, look for MS and Sony to announce next gen at next Spring's E3. I really think it the only way to get people excited about games.

Here's the problem for next gen consoles though: I have a state of the art gaming PC worth about $3K. I love it. But I would argue graphics on it are only teeny tiny slightly better than a $249 PS3.

I understand a lot of the trouble comes from the difficulties in programming the next gen of games, not hardware. For the next gen consoles, this is a huge problem. Suppose a PS4 cost $600 like launch PS3s? Suppose you get a lot more hardware but the games barely look any different?

Good time to be a consumer though. I'm buying quality PS3 titles for as little as $20 new. If I don't buy another for 5 years, I'll still likely never finish all I already own.

 

[MeChaNiZ3D]

I have not had a reason to use my PSP for a few years now, and haven't even bothered with the Vita. I don't even particularly feel like I'm missing out on anything. I don't want a lot of crappy games for the handhelds, but honestly, a few more solid games would be a great addition at this point.

PS3, well, I've bought two for their lifespans, what more do you want? PS4 time, guys.

 

[MeChaNiZ3D]

Oh and, to this day not a single person has been forced to give up the Other OS feature. They gave it up willingly, by signing a contract. The consumer chose on an individual by individual basis which was more important, the Other OS feature or continued access to Sony's free online service. They overwhelmingly chose the latter.

I pretty much agree with the rest of your post, but really? It's very unreasonable to put customers in a position where they have to choose which of two promised functions their product should have. That's BS. Like buying a car and then being forced to choose between windscreen wipers and driving, even though you bought the car expecting to drive in the rain. Admittedly, only a handful of people were going to use that, but it's still disingeuous and contemptible.

 

[flarty]

it would be a damn shame if Sony backed out of the console market, they've had the best exclusives this generation.

In the Xbox's defence Microsoft didn't bother with exclusives as much a PS3 did.

Are you really sure about that?
Alan wake, Gears of war, Halo, Fez, Fable? are just a few games that spring to mind not even mentioning indie classics such as fez or the 1 month exclusivity deals on cod dlc and the more recent skyrim dlc. Thats not even mentioning the exclusivity deals they had going on earlier on such as the first bioshock or mass effect 1.

But when compared to ps3 exclusives the quality and innovation seems to pale. In my opinion anyway.

 

[Warped_Ghost]

it would be a damn shame if Sony backed out of the console market, they've had the best exclusives this generation.

In the Xbox's defence Microsoft didn't bother with exclusives as much a PS3 did.

Are you really sure about that?
Alan wake, Gears of war, Halo, Fez, Fable? are just a few games that spring to mind not even mentioning indie classics such as fez or the 1 month exclusivity deals on cod dlc and the more recent skyrim dlc. Thats not even mentioning the exclusivity deals they had going on earlier on such as the first bioshock or mass effect 1.

But when compared to ps3 exclusives the quality and innovation seems to pale. In my opinion anyway.

Xbox technically has more exclusives than PS3 but thats mostly because of kinect and arcade games. PS3 has more triple A exclusive series.

I don't really see 1 month early dlc as being exclusive because if you consider that to be exclusive you could consider multiple games as being North American exclusives because they release later in Europe.

Here are the two lists
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CategorylayStation_3-only_games
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Xbox_360-only_games


BTW
-Mass Effect 1 never came to ps3 only ME2 and ME3 did
-PS3 version of dawngaurd will take longer than a month because PS3 and Skyrim dont agree with each other
http://ca.ign.com/videos/2012/08/03/news-dawnguard-hits-pc-ps3-version-delayed


Out of curiosity which titles made you think PS3 exclusive titles were better than Xbox ones?

 

[flarty]

I don't really see 1 month early dlc as being exclusive because if you consider that to be exclusive you could consider multiple games as being North American exclusives because they release later in Europe.

I can understand you view, but they are by name exclusivity deals, and are designed to entice people to buy their console over a competitors.

But my fave ps3 exclusives thus far have been MGS4, the uncharted series, Journey, Little Big planet, Heavy Rain. But there's also games in the pipeline i'm still hyped for like The Last Guardian, The last of us and Beyond: Two Souls.

Dnt get me wrong i got no hatred for the 360, the ps3 has been relegated to the bedroom since we bought a 360 with a kinect and i think the interface on the 360 is a lot nicer and a smoother experience, and while it has many great games that are multi platform, there's really not that many triple AAA exclusive i'm interested in, maybe that's because microsoft seem to be more focused on FPS games, and that genre will always be superior on pc.

But hey this is just my opinion, and it only really counts to me.

 

[TheDuckbunny]

I can't help but feel sorry for Sony every time I read news like this. Of the big three I probably like them the most yet they've become the underdog this generation and just seem to struggle to stay alive with every move they make. Here's hoping they'll be able to pick up their game (no pun intended) and continue to make great games possible.

 

[GenGenners]

Good, after everything they have done to their customers no wonder people are moving away from them in droves.

Let's not make this personal.

That's not personal it's business. Sony quality has steadily declined throughout the years and they have had no issues throwing their customers under the bus. Treat your customers like shit and make crappy products, you lose business.

Consumers are also partly to blame. The majority of 'mainstream' gamers don't want the kind of service Sony offers anymore. People want accessible, cheap, user-friendly entertainment. However, Sony has always specialised in top-of-the-range quality stuff. They're the tortoise to Microsoft and Nintendo's hare. Problem is, people don't want the tortoise.
It's similar to the reason why the biggest films of the year are always mindless action flicks. People just prefer instant gratification. It's human nature.

Sony will have to realise this for the next generation, or they're doomed.

What kind of non-sense is that.... are you kidding? People have shown time and time again that they will pay for quality. Apple proves, that and Samsung (you know the company that sony sold of and is doing stupid well).

The problem isn't that sony is targeting some high end customer it's that they have made a good high end or cheap device in years... tv's meh, I can find a lg, or samsung of same quality for the same price and on the high end sony tv's are shit compared to others out there. This isn't new, the sony is going to shit meme/situation has been going on since the mid 90's and isn't exactly hidden from the public eye.

Tldr; sony makes shit products on both the high end and low end. sony is willing to screw over a customer if it will make them a few extra bucks. There is no issue with a customers not wanting to pay for quality. The reports show over and over gamers are now in their mid 30's and have more disposable income then ever (minus 3 years ago during the boom plus before the global recession but certainly more then 8 or 9 years ago).

@ your last paragraph.
Are we even talking about the same Sony?

Also, presenting your own subjective opinion of their products as an objective fact to support your argument isn't very clever.

Also also, yes there are more and more adult gamers who are 30+, but that still doesn't make them a majority. Most are teens and early 20-somethings.

And yeah, despite your claims, I think you'll find the majority of human beings who live on a normal income, when choosing between expensive electronics, will buy the cheaper option.

 

[The_Waspman]

I'm sorry, but I read this headline and thought to myself 'really? This is news?' As the article states, Sony has been losing money on hardware for years.

 

[viranimus]

Snip for formatting

Spoiler: Significance/Law

Underlined - no, access to Sony's content. PsN remains a free service that Sony provides to PsN user it is up to them who can and who cannot access that content. And it is perfectly legal, ethical and just for them to restrict that access to only the people who agreed to get rid of the Other OS ability.

But you ignore how that access to free multiplayer IS a selling feature of the console. You cannot legally withhold a feature to coerce voluntary forfeiture of another feature of that product. That is extorted deprivation of property.

How many PS3 owners, chose PS3 specifically BECAUSE of the free multiplayer and not being required to buy XBL for online matchmaking.
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Bolded: At first, I was gonna point out that the number of users who care about Home ultimately dwarfs the number of people who ever cared about Other OS while using the Ps3 as a gaming device making your point of worth through the number of people who care about it ultimately blow up in your face, but, really, Music Unlimmitted. Free service feature provided by Sony.

Does not matter if it effected only a single user. Its still wrong to remove a feature after the sell of that product is completed. Theft is a criminal act. If your house were foreclosed on and resold and you removed fixtures, it is theft. This is the same.

Side note; Unwanted out of redundancy is still unwanted. Highlighted in advance with the redundant pancreas example.

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Marked through - you really don't know what bait and switch is, do you? Okay, in terms of what you're describing, Bait and Switch might apply, had Sony ever used the words "free online play forever". However, they never did - furthermore, no-one could claim to come to that understanding. Their delivery of the advertised free online therfore is not garunteed forever, but merely as long as the service itself was on offer. As such, since they never promised the service would be free forever, this is not bait and switch, as nothing the consumer was promised was not delivered, considering that the Other OS was not advertisied and promised at a point when an individual could have reasonably bought a Ps3 and then had less than adequate time on the PsN so as to make this a bait and switch.

Ok.. I concede that my use of bait and switch is not precise as it is a variant of bait and switch techniques. False advertisement is also considerable because the product is marketed as having features as reasons to purchase. Theft is also considerable as it is removing part of a product makes it the most comprehensive.

It is logical to assume that a products features would be supported as long as the product is supported. Its "for how long" not "forever". You have it backwards as such the denial of bait and switch does not fly because it is responsibility of the merchant to disclose limits of product features that would not be supported as a feature. Such as a 360 that says GO ONLINE WITH XBL. It also has to state the duration of time that feature is a part of that product and when it will cease to be. Otherwise features are assumed to be at the absolute least, as long as the product is supported, if not the life of the product.

What examples of other products of other industries do not follow that exact structure.

If you were told PS3 would allow you to play online free, without disclosure of limits and that feature is removed, it removes in many cases a feature that would directly impacted the original decision of purchase over the 360. To remove a feature that would have directly impacted decision of purchase after the purchase, that is theft. To withhold that feature until conditions are complied via coercion is extortion.

That is why consumer protection is of utmost significance.

______________________________

And no, its more like being asked which of toppings you don't want on your sunday. See, thats the appropriate analogy.

If your pointing to extorting the features of both multiplayer and the ability to play specific newer games until forfeiture of a feature, Again, Extortion is a criminal act.

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Spoiler: Psyche

As for the psych, what I'm seeing is the same old bitching about how todays youth never had it hard growing up, blah blah blah, it's been said by every generation going back all through time, you can change the names of the generations and the cultural landmarks, but its all the same. You then try to use it to explain why other people aren't as anal about insignifigant consumer rights, and why they're wrong for that.

Actually... You might have taken it that way but that was not the angle that I approached it from. Its not actually even the same thing because it is much different than that. Im not suggesting struggle makes for a stronger person. I generally do support that notion, but its not what I was saying. If anything, this generation has suffered something far more grievous.

What I was saying is that in normal human development this current generation has suffered a specific set of circumstances. Their transition from child to adulthood biologically is ran on a completely different time frame than their transition from child to adulthood legally and with that legal disparity it has created a further disparity in their transition from child to adult developmentally. In this scenario the struggles can easily be identical, Only the schedule changes so this isnt shitting on them young whippersnappers.

Teens are treated as children more than they are treated like adults and the length of time that state is kept in limbo keeps increasing with each consequent gap and that gap is getting shorter and more frequent. Every age based limitation we impose upon teens "to keep them safe" has increased for years and frequently. Voting, Drinking, Driving, Property ownership, All aimed with good intentions of giving them time to be better prepared but resulting in an older individual who is still unprepared, but because they have grown into adulthood and missing the vital stages of learning and development the result is the adult child not understanding why they need to prepare at all. They never had to worry about it before, so why should they be concerned with it now?

Its not that they struggled less. Its that they are not equipped to inherit the world because their parents did everything in their power to keep them from actually comprehending the world they were supposed to inherit by depriving them of experiencing it. To put it another way. Thanks to their parents misguided and backward parenting GenY will inherit the toolbox to maintain the world, but wont understand what a hammer is or is for because they never had the need or even chance to learn while they were still willing to learn.

Youve illustrated this perfectly. You look at the right and call it insignificant. The issue is not the usefulness of the right. The issue is that something rightfully yours was taken away from you and denied you the ability to consent or defend against that removal . That is theft. Theft is a criminal act. If you do not punish criminal acts, you invite more criminal acts of greater severity That is a predominant keystone in the foundation of law and order. Theft and extortion are criminal acts.

If you chose to stop looking once you reached the point you felt personally effected, then of course dont see the problem and why you think theft, false advertisement, extortion, deprivation of property via coercion is acceptable or even legal. Being personally affected does not make criminal actions any less of crimes. And yes, some crimes not only go unpunished, but untried and even uncharged.

The decision to disregard a crime just because you do not see how it effects you is Omission and in some places failure to act is also seen as a criminal act. But even if you do chose to ignore it, It does not make it any less a crime.


Now.. Im done with this. Entirely too much of my personal attention has been directed at explaining criminal activity that should have already been understood. If it still eludes you, nothing else I can say will make it any more comprehensible or comprehensive.

 

[The Lunatic]

Well Sony, if you don't fuck over Planetside 2 with your insane reputation of nickel and dimming the living crap out of your MMOs, maybe you'll make some money on that.

 

[Rednog]

No big game releases,no big console draws. This is a barren time of year for gaming, ironically when a fair portion of the population has the most time. It's hurting everyone.

I know Ive never understood why console release were so barren this time of year. It seems counter-intuitive.

I assume both of you are talking about the summer as a period where the population has the most time. But I hope you realize that the article is talking about Quarter 1 which in the business world is January, February, and March.
Quarter System:
Q1 - January, February, and March
Q2 - April, May, and June
Q3 - July, August, and September
Q4 - October, November, December

 

[Stealth]

sony will be FINE