The irony kills -- PSP music download service stalled by DRM

It's one thing to hold off competitors or annoy those pesky consumers with a bit of DRM, but Sony is really taking this stuff all the way now that they've managed to hold up their own operations with attempts to secure content on the PSP. Apparently they're hoping to launch a WiFi-friendly music store, with similarities to iTunes in operation, but haven't quite got the DRM system sorted. "A big issue for us has been the (Digital Rights Management) and how we can secure that content to the Memory Stick," says John Koller, senior marketing manager for the PSP. "The studios and the labels don't want their content floating around." Sounds like they aren't quite set on using Sony's own Connect music store -- they're watching to see how that performs, and investigating other options -- which is all well and good. But we still can't help but indulge in a bit of unsightly gloating at the though of Sony a development team being hampered by their own DRM and file format failings.

[Via T3]

[Gaz @ Aug 10th 2006 10:39AM]

LMAO

[Todd @ Aug 10th 2006 10:41AM]

I love it!

FYI - Windows XP firewall blocks microsoft.com's Genuine Windows Advantage from running...

And every day my locally installed Norton Internet Security blocks itself from connecting to symantec.com

[KawF @ Aug 10th 2006 10:42AM]

So... basically, Sony Computer Entertainment is at fault for the music and movie studios being frigging nutters about content protection? That seems logical.... or not...

[JinKazama @ Aug 10th 2006 10:52AM]

It is ironic but the ire should be directed at the music companies for once again trying to restrict the way consumers can use what they buy...not Sony. Yeah Sony did the same with their rootkit, but give it a rest already. If apple did the same the article would have been titled, "Music execs still ramming DRM down our throats" But since bashing Sony is the new cool thing to do in techie circles I guess engadget is not immune.

[Smitty Werbenjaegermanjensen @ Aug 10th 2006 10:55AM]

"The studios and the labels don't want their content floating around."

Of course they never seem to realize the fact that is already floating around.

[Steve @ Aug 10th 2006 10:56AM]

Hey, here is a thought Sony...

How about some games?

[Gareth @ Aug 10th 2006 11:01AM]

bashing Sony is cool and permissable because people are finally starting to realise that Sony are throwing overpriced, unreliable, badly engineered hardware into the marked and hoping for the best. Then if that fails, they'll invent a couple of proprietary standards just to make sure!

The issue is that Sony Music and SCEE cant agree on DRM that meeets both their requirements, which is funny considering they are both the same brand.

G - go on, flame me all the way to Hull

[marklar @ Aug 10th 2006 11:02AM]

blagh, when i read the word 'memory stick' it immediately reconfirmed that i would not buy another sony product because of their insistence on there own propriety formats for er...everything, allowing mp3 is a start but not much of one.

[Eric @ Aug 10th 2006 11:17AM]

I didn't know marklar's could speak English...

[hello @ Aug 10th 2006 11:18AM]

Steve,

The PSP has a lot of great games, as many if not more as its nearest competitor has. Here are some reviews of both systems games:

http://psp.ign.com/index/reviews.html

http://ds.ign.com/index/reviews.html

When people say the PSP doesn't have games or doesn't have many games or doesn't have many good games or anything of the sort they are in fact lying.

[ChillyWilly @ Aug 10th 2006 11:22AM]

While I would much prefer Sony focus on more gaming content, I'd say their best option (if it were available to them) would be to support FairPlay, which would allow all of the DRM'd iTunes songs to work on the PSP. It wouldn't hurt my feelings here.

[Sony is no different than anyone else... @ Aug 10th 2006 11:23AM]

Gareth,

Overpriced yes, badly engineered and unreliable...no. Sony's physical designs and hardware are always top notch, their failure is consistently in software design. Even the staunchest Sony critic who knows anything about the electronic industry will concede that.

And can we kill the proprietary format argument already. Every electronic company with a different take on something does this, why would any company attempt to innovate if it can't protect it's investment? And don't you dare say patent law we all know what a joke that is (see 90% of patent infringement suits). Hardware is not where it at when it comes to making profits in electronics, licensing is. If your format goes mainstream and people have to pay you to use your invention that's where you make your money (see microsoft...).

That's why all these companies like Sony throw all these proprietary formats up against the wall, they know that if even one sticks they are due to make millions. And let's face it all these guys are in it for one thing...to make money.

[Eric @ Aug 10th 2006 11:54AM]

Yes, I counted 6 or 7 total games with a 9.0 or over, and hey, guess what, almost EVERY SINGLE ONE WAS A PORT OR NEW VERSION OF A CONSOLE GAME THAT I COULD PLAY ON MY PS2!

The DS? Not a single 9.0 or above title [Of which there were 9, though I could be one off, damn cat wouldnt stfu, and I might've lost track] could be done on an older console brother because of the touchscreen aspects.

I had high hopes for the PSP when it came out.
I loved mine when I bought it.
But it quickly lost it's appeal, and after I realized I was re-hashing the same thing over and over again while playing GTA:LCS, I sold my PSP, and bought games for my DS with the money.

[PEZ @ Aug 10th 2006 11:59AM]

It is because of this, Sony will radically change what is the PSP/2 when it comes out late next year.

Thanks.

[brian @ Aug 10th 2006 12:03PM]

Sounds like Sony's Idei made a bad decision when he turned down Steve Jobs' offer to Sony to get onboard with iTunes...

http://news.com.com/Jobs+offered+to+let+Sony+into+iTunes,+report+says/2100-1027_3-5348969.html

If Sony + Apple teamed up on iTunes for the PSP and upcoming PS3 (with music, video & the impending movie downloads), it would be game, set, & match against Microsoft.

[aws910 @ Aug 10th 2006 12:20PM]

Sony is in it for the money, this is true. It doesn't justify what they do, though.

You imply that Memory Sticks were a Sony attempt to "innovate". I find that hard to believe. When it was released, there were already a myriad of other flash memory choices - MMC, CF, SmartMedia, etc. What magnificence did Sony bring to the table? Nothing. They are just trying to do a Betamax-part-2.

The only thing Mem Stick has going for it is Sony's design and the fact that Sony products exclusively use it. I constantly find myself in awe of Sony products, only to remember that they use Memory stick.

[Sunkist @ Aug 10th 2006 12:38PM]

So..what is the psp? I know its not for playing games, that would be silly.

[LH @ Aug 10th 2006 12:38PM]

First of all, Sony IS a music and movie studio... so I am not sure I follow the logic of criticizing music/movie studios but not Sony. I also don't get the complaint about memory sticks being proprietary - as opposed to - what? To those use-em-everywhere DS cartridges? An Xbox game that you can use on a gameboy? What is this magical, existing, non-proprietary device that stores content on a portable gaming console that can be used on every other manufacturer's device? I can use memory sticks in my cameras, my PC, my PDAs, my TV, my camcorder, a PSP - yeah, cos it's all Sony - but then again, why would I want to? I never wanted to put film into my cassette player or a thumb drive in my CD player, I've always been okay with buying the proper media for the device it will be used with. Besides, at least it has a way to record and play your own content, something other portable game systems don't do well at all (I don't think the 4G pricey DS hard drive even counts).

[CSD @ Aug 10th 2006 12:57PM]

Okay, if this ever does work, all the tacks would be in Sony's Atrac format of course, it would require another update, and would require more pointless things

[Frankenstein Black @ Aug 10th 2006 1:02PM]

HEY SONY! You can’t be so hung up on DRM controls to the point that it SEVERELY DELAYS & PARALYZES PRODUCT DELIVERY! The day of the TV and Walkman monopoly has long since past and you continue to move like a LUMBERING GIANT!

GET OVER IT ALREADY! Today’s hyper competitive market requires FLEET OF FOOT-NESS and unless you MOVE your ASS you will continue to get it handed to you by the likes of Apple, Nokia, MS and others. Now lets get going already!!

-----------------
OH, AND JUST IN CASE YOU NEED ANOTHER PS3 REMINDER, IF YOU MISS THIS HOLIDAY CYCLE YOU ARE, TO QUOTE A FAMOUS FRENCH POET, FUX’ED!

[StreetStealth @ Aug 10th 2006 1:16PM]

How hard can it be to encrypt an ATRAC with the PSP's serial number and save that on the memory stick?

And heck, what's the point in encrypting an ATRAC anyway; it's not like it was going to be useful anywhere alse!

[Your Mother @ Aug 10th 2006 4:16PM]

I agree with JinKazama (post #4). If anyone but sony had done this, then it would be a significantly different headline. It would probably sound more like the big-bad DRM was stopping iTunes or Microsoft from giving us another service, which is way better than Sony's.

Seriously. Sony-bashing from engadget? I thought that this site was a little better than that.

[Kyle @ Aug 10th 2006 4:31PM]

Hey Your Mother, you're not making anyone feel bad by your pathetic, "I thought that this site was a little better than that" comment.

You and everyone else who has a problem with Engadget's story need to remember one thing: this is nothing more than a blog. If Engadget wants to write a story, "We F*cking Hate Sony" they can! The can be as biased as they want! If you want news, go to wired.com!
There are still hundreds of thousands of people that come here every day and don't bitch about their news...

[TheProfessor @ Aug 10th 2006 6:01PM]

Talk about taking words out of context.

[dave @ Aug 11th 2006 2:33AM]

I already have music on my PSP.
They're in a format called "MP3"
I make them from the CDs I buy.
...mostly used, on eBay.

[Monopole @ Aug 11th 2006 10:03AM]

A few observations:
As for the the Betamax2000 I mean memory stick format is not only it's proprietary format, but the corresponding licencing fees which drive up the price, which is already at a premium due to the lower volume of production (resulting from its proprietary nature). This means that the memory stick costs twice as much as compariable formats. This is lethal when dealing with portable media players.
As for the good hardware/bad software arguement the problem goes a little deeper . Sony is reasonably good at hardware, nowhere near as good as Panasonic or Nintendo on ruggedness, but reasonably good. Where they really shined was user interface and styling, traditionally very well thought out and intuitive. The problem is that bad software kills the user interface for the PSP. It's really a pain to navigate or use. The hardware of the PSP is pretty atrocious as well, with the misbegotten UMD drive, memory stick and horrific battery life (another lethal defficency in a media player)
As for the DS being incapable of playing media, the Play Yan is very capable and uses very cheap SD cards with incredible battery life.
The problem is that Sony is so constrained by DRM and Prorietary formats that they cannot effectvely challenge Apple or Nintendowith new innovation. The only hope they have to save the PSP is wireless video download for travellers. The PSP could do it well with a simple patch, but since they can't get their shite together on music much less video the PSP will always be an also ran.

[SuicideNinja @ Aug 11th 2006 1:08PM]

Pfff. I wouldn't use my PSP for that anyway.

I wait, I wouldn't really use my PSP for anything...it's a worthless piece of junk!

[monopole @ Aug 11th 2006 6:25PM]

Sony seems to be taking a new tact, DRM with extreme predjudice:
http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/08/11/1815258

[Ivan_PSP @ Sep 4th 2006 11:41PM]

The PSP is the best handheld device period i got 2. You can browse the internet view photos videos listen to music & play great games with awesome quality can you play games on your crappy iPods no DS can you do anything fun there i really dout it. So stf^ PSP is perfect what else do you people want omfg by the way PSP has a great design plus the price is really good just $200 SONY rules cheap people Shut up already DS is crap lame suck....