Sony Japan adds PS3 video downloads

It's not exactly an Xbox Live Video killing app here from what we can tell, but it looks like Sony's Japanese broadband unit, So-net, has added content download support in conjunction with PlayStation 3 firmware 1.10. That is to say, if you're a proud owner of a new PS3, you'll be able to acquire digital media over their P-TV service, with video in 720p or even 1080p. Details are still sparse as we're waiting for our Tokyo branch to fill us in, but the 8Mbps H.264 downloads appear restriction free (although we doubt you can actually get them off your PS3). We'll let you know more as we do (like exactly what content this pertains to, prices, IPTV, etc.), but since it's So-net something tells us it could be a little while before digital movie downloads make it to US customers.

[Thanks, Dj NoPantsCuban]

[steve @ Nov 12th 2006 1:57PM]

well, all this seams to be is sony's responce to XBL, which looks kinda weak to me. Video was just one aspect of live on the 360's launch.

[Karl @ Nov 12th 2006 3:09PM]

Sony have to play the catch-up game. First, you match their offering, then you're ready to go further and try beat it.

[PreGHz @ Nov 12th 2006 2:03PM]

But So-Net doesn't only offer videos.

It's a whole range of products, ideas, services.

[steve @ Nov 12th 2006 2:08PM]

another thought, is it just me, or does it seam like the ps3 is does everything the 360 does, just in shiny black? I may be asking for it from the sony fanboys, so I'll let u know ahead of time that I'm nutral in the whole next-gen-war. But what does the PS3 really do better than the 360? Aside from the web-browser(which the dreamcast had, and we all know how well that helped the system), I really can't tell the difference between the two, sans Name. This, along with the extra $ u spend, is really keeping me away from the PS3. Graphics? Ya, they look identical. If not, link to some proof. Video playback? Just burn a fricken DVD (and tell me where I could find some 720p, letalone 1080p video downloads) Blu-Ray? the codec they use looks like crap anyways, 1080p crap. Honestly, all you fan-boys that I just got fired up, give me a link to something that PROVES that the PS3 is really worth it, and maby i'll concider waiting in line thursday night to pick one up....

[Dan @ Nov 12th 2006 2:27PM]

That IS what makes it better. Just because they don't spice up your life doesn't mean the system has nothing over the 360.

[niels @ Nov 12th 2006 2:34PM]

steve buddy calm down. you dont HAVE to buy a ps3. you could save that 600 bucks and donate it to charity. please do that. it would make me very happy.

[myscrnnm @ Nov 12th 2006 2:38PM]

"well, all this seams to be is sony's responce to XBL, which looks kinda weak to me. Video was just one aspect of live on the 360's launch."

Not really. Sony's PlayStation Network Platform really shows that they are serious about taking on Microsoft in the online gaming realm. You can just tell from this one screenshot that the PlayStation Store alone is more professionally designed than the XBox Live's Marketplace. There is a more effcient use of space and higher contrast for easier viewing.

Video at the Xbox 360's launch? I am afraid you are sadly mistaken. Xbox Live's video was just recently announced by Microsoft, like a few days ago.

[steve @ Nov 12th 2006 2:49PM]

All i was doing was trying to get some feedback on why the PS3 would be a better choice over a 360. My whole idea here, was that they are basically the same. The only difference I can really see is that sony uses more "Style" in their interface and console design. I'm not saying that any of this is a bad thing, I think the PS3 is dead sexy.

But, my point remains. Other than including Blu-ray out of the box, what does one have that the other hasn't. And yes, the 360 had video download the first day. The XBL video service that you are referring to is a online movie/tv store (Like iTunes); and yes, that's new.

What I want is a definite reason to choose a PS3 over a 360

[shirizaki @ Nov 12th 2006 3:45PM]

How about the fact that you can swap the HD? Or the fact that if you REALLY like games you're not going to go fanboy for one console.

Stop playing the "neutral" side, because there isn't one. If you love to play videogames, you'll purchase all 3 consoles and stop bitching about prices. No one is forcing a gun to your head to purchase a 360 or PS3 on the first day. If you really want to align yourself to a certain console, do it and continue with your troll posts.

Whipping up a video download service isn't something that can be done in a matter of a few days. It takes months to program code, beta testing, and setting up servers. They've had this on the works and released it to steal thunder from MS.


And you can find 1080p content to download (in WMV HD). It takes a little longer to find though, but it exists. 720p exists already, and it get broadcast (or upconverted) by the player. And MANY people don't have the money to burn 1 movie to a DVD when they can just put a 700MB file to a CD or a few files on a DVD to play.

[Karl @ Nov 12th 2006 3:13PM]

By the way, what is the PS3's user agent string?

To check, anyone with a PS3 please visit http://www.useragentstring.com/

[jlh @ Nov 12th 2006 3:35PM]

Steve,

I totally agree with you and this is one of the reasons why my next Sony purchase will be a $100 (after store credit) silver PS2 not a PS3. I feel like everything the PS3 promises I already have with the 360 at a cheaper price. I don't need or want BluRay, a web browser or linux on my game console. So for me I'll be a 360, PS2 and maybe a Wii owner for the next two to three years until the PS3 is down to $250 then it'd be worth a purchase.

[Matthew @ Nov 12th 2006 5:36PM]

Steve my PS2 and I have had more fun than I can shake a stick at, that is one reason I am usually more likely to support the PS3. After the SNES the Playstation brand has done a very good job of supporting games that play to my tastes. The exclusives for the Xbox and Gamecube held little appeal to me, and thus far only one 360 game, Dead Rising, has made me contemplate a 360 purchase. After an unexpectedly high console price and months of silence many gamers were left with a bad taste in their mouth so long as the PS3 was concerned. Sony have made some missteps, but as far as I can remember all of those were public relations blunders. To this point I cannot think of a single major mistake that has been made with the hardware or software of the PS3, except possibly not living up to the PR/Marketing hype (but you didn't really believe all of that did you?) Recently most if not all of the news concerning the PS3's hardware/software has been quite positive. Example: Multiple OS support, Quieter & Cooler Running Than 360, User Upgradeable Hard Drive, Optional Game Installation, and Damned Near 100% Backwards Compatibility. Some may cite a lack of rumble in the controller as a hardware failure. I disagree, I have never thought that rumble adds much immersion to a game, force feedback would, but rumble is something I turn off wherever possible. Also those swank touch-activated power and eject buttons more than make up for rumble's omission. I'll probably get a PS3 in six to eight months, once its first set of real triple-a games start rolling out. I may only buy one or two games at that time, but I'll be buying it based on future expectations for the system and its exclusives.

[NeoteriX @ Nov 12th 2006 7:23PM]

If a failure to procure enough parts for a sufficient launch isn't a "major mistake" in the hardware, I don't know what is. :)

[Andir3.0 @ Nov 13th 2006 5:35AM]

For all those trying to justify a PS3 purchase, look at the games at launch of the PS3 and the games after a year with the 360 on market. You say they look alike. Now add the fact that the developers have not had sufficient time to truly discover what the Cell processor can do and try to look forward another year or two.

Looking beyond the processor to the drive alone. Let's put aside all the "pushing a format" complaining and look at the sheer data size. If you can, for instance, imagine Oblivion's world if you have played that. It's pretty big, yes? Multiply that by at LEAST four (taking into consideration that the installed game is 4.5 GB) and you have a single sided Blu-Ray game that has at least four times more content than Oblivion today. I say at least because you will most likely re-use textures, AI scripts, sound and all that fun stuff. This leaves a hell of alot of room for more dungeons, more detailed creature models, and more content. Doesn't that sound more interesting?

Let's say your not a fan of PRG games. Some people aren't. I'm not a fan of FPS games on consoles, so I can see the opposite being true. Let's look at that new game Gears of War on your 360. The disc size it roughly 6.6G. Take that world you progress yourself through, do the same math we did before and you can get (again) at least three times more content to play through. Not to mention, if your a FPS fan, think of all the extra maps you can frag your friends in!!

Taking all that into consideration, I believe Microsoft said that there will be no HD-DVD games. I can't quite find that quote right now, but even if there were, be honest, how many peripheral devices have you bought for your previous consoles?

While going out and buying a PS3 may not be top on your list now, you may be asking yourself if it's going to be worth getting another 360 if/when your system fails in the future. It's all a matter of perspective when it all boils down to what you have vs what you want. While I'm sure every "fanboy" out there wants to push his neighbor's face in the dirt and say, "There! You see! My console is #1!!!!!!" It's not going to win them any points in the end. The upcoming video game battles are going to be beneficial for us, the gamers.

Disclaimer: I am not necessarily a Sony fanboy by a longshot, I own two Sony devices. (a pair of ear buds and a PS2) I have my N64, SNES, and DS that I play on a regular basis. I will soon own a PS3 as well, but it's the choice I made based on the fact that I cannot and will not force myself to buy another Microsoft product out of sheer distaste for their business model. While supporting Sony isn't looked upon as being a good choice by many, they are probably the only "good" competition Microsoft has (as far as my home theater goes) at this time. I also praise Sony for taking the bold move and allowing a true OS on their system other than Windows. It's good news to hear that the PS3 can create games that look as good as the 360 to me, since the other advantages the system has makes the choice for me alot clearer. Whether or not this helps you dicide is none of my business, nor is it the business of anyone else here, as much as they'd beg to differ. The opinions I expressed are my own. Feel free to ignore them if you like.

[Jaks @ Nov 13th 2006 8:23AM]

Look its very simple. You cant just go on hardware alone. You just cannot say that xbox360 or ps3 is better because it has better hardware. In the end many complex factors come into play, most importantly the availability of good games, but also other factors such as brandname acceptance, and consumer satisfaction. At present, the influence of these factors cannot be known, because the ps3 has not come out yet (or came out only last week). Therefore, it is impossible to say whether you should buy a 360 or a ps3. The only way to know is to do the most sensible thing, which is to wait a little while to see how things play out. Good luck.

[Guest @ Nov 17th 2006 1:32PM]

If you are betting with the future games, you should buy PS3. The potential with PS3 is vested. The cell processor is claimed by a lot of experts as a future proved for gambling. Most of the experts agree that give PS3 a year for devepers to get to know the system, you will the the PS3 will pull away from xbox360 in term of game experiences and grafixs. Since Xbox360 is based on current intel technologies and they are becaming outdated pretty fast, cell technology is a new idea and concept that has multiple subunits doing parallel works/computations. I always believe a good house must have a good foundation, else is a lemon.