jack-tretton
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Tretton describes PS3 as "short term sacrifice, long term gain"
The strong arm of SCEA, Jack Tretton, sat down for an interview with MSNBC oddly enough and talked about Sony's strategy for the PS3 in the coming year. We actually move away from food analogies this time and get right into sports, as Jack explains the first year of the PS3 like "the first inning of a nine-inning baseball game ... You're not going to win many baseball games if you panic when you're down 1-0 in the first inning." He talks at length about the price cut of the PS3 and how it has boosted sales significantly, upcoming exclusive titles, and other stuff we've heard many times before.As for whether or not Tretton thinks consumers are ready for high-definition broadband-enabled consoles, he thinks that no, not every consumer is going to be able to take advantage of the PS3's many functions right away, but that's fine, he says. The system is designed to last a decade and by that time, everyone will love what the black monolith has to offer. Tretton also notes there is a learning curve consumers need to be aware of when buying consoles anymore -- it's not just a purchase, plug, and play scenario anymore.One final note -- he talks about the Sony "arrogance" that has been construed around the internet and says that they aren't actually arrogant, rather, bloggers and press ran the idea around so much that it started to stick with people and, well, perspective plays its role. Something along those lines.
Tretton admits to 'missteps' in PS3's first year
With the PlayStation 3 having recently celebrated its first birthday, Sony Computer Entertainment America's CEO Jack Tretton had a little discussion with MSNBC over what could kindly be called, "The Year of Issues." Tretton explained that the PS3 would be in a better place today if more units were available at launch, noting that demand was strong but tough to satisfy due to Blu-ray diode production problems. The hype of the launch also faded very quickly as Tretton became famous for making the delusional "$1200 quote" in February (without a lick of irony).Although he believed the launch to be "the biggest disappointment for the last year," he drew attention to that old-faithful: the 10-year product lifecycle. Sony's had 10 good years with both the PS1, the PS2 is getting up there, and he expects nothing less with the PS3. With a price cut and some desirable titles out the door, things look to get better (with fewer "missteps") in year two. [Via GameDaily]
Jack Tretton talks about slow start of PS3, how it's all right
Sony Computer Entertainment America's head honcho, Jack Tretton, sat down for an interview with GamePro to discuss why Sony is okay with the slow start the PS3 has gotten in units sold. Our words, not his. First and foremost, he mentions the lifespan of PlayStation systems: "The original PlayStation lasted 10 years -- a tremendous innovation when other platforms died and were all but forgotten ... The same thing is going on with the PS2, and I think that will be the case with the PS3." We say that's likely with the PS2, but the original PlayStation didn't quite make it to ten years. The PS2 is easily getting more support even after its heir has been born.Tretton bobs his head from side to side [blogger's note: he may or may not have actually bobbed his head from side to side] and goes on: "I don't think we expected nor we need to capture the lifecycle of the PS3 in the first nine months. We want to build evangelists, one consumer at a time, and it involves sacrificing in the short term before paying off in the long term." So, Tretton isn't worried about the slow uptake on the PS3 in part from the continued support of the PS2 and the idea that over time, evangelists (in the marketing universe we call them apostles) will spread the word that the PS3 is fantastic and they'll have the games to back up their statement. Since most of us here are relatively proud owners, would you back up his statement or say that sales are important now, not later?
Engadget & Joystiq interview: Kaz Hirai and Jack Tretton, Presidents, Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc., and America
We got a rare chance to sit down and talk shop with recently-named Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. President Kaz Hirai, and his US successor, Jack Tretton. These two had a lot to say, and we were more than happy to let them talk about where the PS3's going in terms of hardware, software, and services, why Sony's E3 presence this year is so radically different than last year, even a little bit about how things have been at PlayStation HQ post-Kutaragi -- check it out!So out of all the three press conferences we've been writing up, we're giving each one a grade based on a new highly scientific Mega Man ranking system. Sony is our last one, but chronologically so we haven't gotten there yet. But this press conference had a much different tone then let's say last year's E3 press conference. How much did you guys look at last year's, how should we say, performance, and decide that you needed to do something different? What kind of decision making process was that?Jack: Well obviously I was not as intimately involved in planning last year's press conference as I was in this one, but it's funny now that you look at that perspective and you see some of the other press conferences and how people are conducting themselves. I think companies are very proud of their success and they want to tell everybody how successful you are. But what you realize is that everybody already knows that and no one really cares. They want to know how you are going to be successful going forward. And so we've certainly taken our fair share of heat about, you know, the performance of PlayStation 3 in the first six to eight months, and I guess we wanted to focus our message on really telling you why PlayStation 3 is going to be successful going forward.And its all about content, its about games, and I think going through that experience, you know, the light bulb goes off, and you go oh, wait a minute, its really all about the content and what we're going to do going forward to keep our platforms relevant. Its not about what we did 10 years ago, its not about how many units we've sold here or there. So clearly I think for points of reference and perspective we wanted to point some things out that we really wanted that press conference geared towards why people are going to want to buy games and buy our platforms and that was kind of the theme and the central message. I give Dave [Karraker, Senior Director, Corporate Communications, SCEA] a lot of credit for building off of that theme and coordinating tremendous amounts of presentations and content through the whole thing. But hopefully we've stayed on message and we've gotten the point across.So why no word about rumble?Jack: Well, I guess at this point the SIXAXIS controller is something that we're comfortable with and we've certainly settled our differences with Immersion. Is it something that can happen down the road? Absolutely. But the bottom line is we haven't made that decision and we didn't have anything to announce or introduce. Will we down the road? Possibly, but it's unbeknownst to me if we have a rumble controller coming out.Oh I think you'd know before anyone![laughter] Well, you'd be surprised! It's a big company...
Tretton offers hand to third party devs to take advantage of PS3
The claim of third party companies creating shoddy ports for the PS3 probably grew exponentially in importance from the whole EA 30fps vs. 60fps debacle and deserves a little more discussion. Jack Tretton released his thoughts on the claims that multiplatform games look better on the Xbox 360 than the PlayStation 3. He basically reiterated the idea that it's up to the developers to take advantage of the power of the PS3 and Sony is doing everything they can to assist them in development, to ease the crushing power of the PS3's architecture.Tretton said what everyone was thinking, too: "what's the point of porting it over to another platform if it is not going to look as good on a platform that is more expensive? Why waste any money in development doing that?" We ask the same questions every night before we go to sleep, but our pillows never answer. Tretton does not want people to think the first-party titles are going to pick up the slack, rather, he wants third party companies to know that Sony is there for them, to assist them in any way possible, so that they as well as consumers will get the most out of their ginormous black behemoth. Seriously, everyone would benefit if they just tried a bit harder.
Tretton reaffirms the 10 year life-cycle of PS3
It's been said before, but Jack Tretton thought it wise to re-issue a statement regarding the life expectancy of the PlayStation 3. A lot of folks may see a price drop this early indicative of a short console life, a desperate move, or the clever cutting of manufacturing costs to help consumers save money also. We like the latter, but the former two are what need addressing -- Tretton assures the world that the PS3 is set for a future-proof, 10 year life. He said Sony could have made a PS2.5 and taken a ride on the money train, but they opted not to. He takes a shot at the competition, saying "To be perfectly honest with you, I think that is a bit of what we are competing with." Or is he talking about the PS2 itself?A few more choice statements from Tretton covered how the system doesn't need to convert everybody from day one. They can take their time selling consoles across ten years, he says. We guess this is since the price is an obstacle for many people right now, even with the price cut. Finally, Tretton assures us Sony has built "a machine that we firmly believe is future proof and is going to carry us for the next 10 years." We hope so and we can't wait for all the years ahead of us. We hardly know more than a handful of titles slated for 2008, let alone 2010.[via CVG]
Tretton: Sony doesn't "bribe" for exclusives
An interview in this month's PlayStation Magazine held a couple revelations. First, Sony doesn't shell out money to keep a game exclusive, or buy exclusive content to make a game seem better on their console. Second, Jack Tretton feels Sony is the "middle ground" for gaming -- we'll explain in a bit. We're not sparking this flame -- this is Tretton himself and we honestly couldn't agree more with him.In the interview, Tretton said "We have a very different approach to exclusives than some of our competitors. We don't buy exclusivity. We don't fund development. We don't, for the lack of a better term, bribe somebody to only do a game on our platform. We earn it by saying "you can build a better game on our platform. If you focus your development on our platform, you will ultimately be more successful." We believe him. Even if, over the next few years, only half of the PS2 owners of the world adopt a PS3, it will be the most successful machine this generation and spending, say, $50 million dollars to some company for exclusive downloadable content would be completely meaningless.Tretton also touched upon what exclusive games meant to Sony. "You know, if we were working on three games, it doesn't make for a very big exclusive list, but if we got 15, we've got a larger exclusive list before the third party comes to you with an exclusive. You almost get to the point where Nintendo's at, where they can do it without the third parties, but I don't know if that makes for a healthy environment. I think we sit perfectly in the middle. Microsoft is too dependent on the third-party community, and Nintendo is too dependent on first-party. We like to feel that we got a pretty good mix." Nobody can deny this. Tretton hit the nail on the head. Even though the price is high, even though the big library of games is still a month or two away, that is the reason Sony will continue to pull through. They don't, as the old saying goes, put all their eggs in one basket.[via Joystiq]
Sony's Jack Tretton: 'We don't buy exclusivity'
Perhaps now would be a good time to start? In an interview published within the latest issue of PSM, Sony Computer Entertainment America president, Jack Tretton, responds to the magazine's observation that there are fewer exclusive titles bound for (and to) the PlayStation 3 than there possibly could be. Mr. Tretton explains that Sony's approach to the acquisition of exclusives is different than those of competitors, perhaps in the sense that it's far more noble and devoid of unspeakable acts of bribery. Or perhaps in the sense that there isn't much of an approach at all."Yeah, 'fewer exclusives' is a term, and I don't know what makes an exclusive," says Tretton. "We have a very different approach to exclusives than some of our competitors. We don't buy exclusivity. We don't fund development. We don't, for the lack of a better term, bribe somebody to only do a game on our platform." That's correct, generating reasons for consumers to purchase and enjoy your console over others became a dubious, underhanded maneuver when you weren't looking. Since the publisher (of third-party titles such as Heavenly Sword and Lair) isn't willing to stoop that low, it would much rather "earn" exclusives. "We earn it by saying 'you can build a better game on our platform. If you focus your development on our platform, you will ultimately be more successful. We can try to partner up with you from a technological standpoint. We can try to partner up with you from a marketing standpoint. But just economically and technologically, this is the system that makes the most sense for you.'"With money apparently not changing hands for that exclusive status, how do you suppose the system's comparatively small install base makes "the most sense" economically? No answer is obtained from Tretton, who then rightly notes that as a first-party, Sony has a very strong ability to provide plenty of exclusive titles. However, he warns that relying too much on first-party endeavors as Nintendo does might not make for a "healthy environment" and that conversely, Microsoft is "too dependent on the third-party community."Grab a copy of this month's PSM to read the full interview.[Via GamesRadar Forums]
Jack Tretton teases E3 surprises, promises "more than 100 titles" by year end
Sony has been going full throttle on it's new PlayStation.Blog with some of the biggest names at the company doing regular posts. This time, the president and CEO of SCEA, Jack Tretton weighs in with an interesting post about the past successes of the PlayStation brand and some of his thoughts of the future. It's interesting stuff and definitely worth reading. He also gives game-starved PS3 owners some good news by implying that the drought is almost done: "We have more than 15 games coming from our own internal studios alone this year for PS3. Our third party partners will weigh in with a host of great games giving us more than 100 titles by year end on that system alone."Later on in the piece are hints that we're in for some cool surprises at E3 too, stating that not only will we see new stuff on the known titles like Ratchet and Clank or Heavenly Sword, but also they will announce "a few surprises we have up our sleeves that no one has seen." Intriguing and exciting stuff and we'll find out in less than a month! Anybody want to start the random unsubstantiated guessing on what they're gonna show? I say ... Killzone Bowling and Barbie's Xtreme SOCOM Adventures.[Via N4G]
Sony CEO Jack Tretton goes blogging
Sony executives are really loving their new blog. Even Sony America President and CEO Jack Tretton's ghost writer has written a post for the site about "a quick look back" and " a strong push forward" ... and we all know why the look back is quick. Anyway, Tretton finally gets to craft a public message without pesky things like words and journalists getting in the way. The Sony blog is a place for Tretton to breath free and just talk to the consumer like an open and honest ... oh, what's that? Tretton says, "Everything communicated in any form these days has to be considered an 'on-the-record statement' so as much as I'd like to, I can't completely throw my corporate hat out the window." Ok, so maybe the information won't flow like the spice on Arrakis, but we're still listening Jack, so what's on your mind?
PLAYSTATION Network to become "overwhelming" soon
Jack Tretton is a man of big promises. Although his claims may be boisterous at times, we can't help but join in his excitement for the future of PS3. Sure, we've heard the song and dance before: PS3 is a system of potential. As the system continues to grow, it will offer and more and more. For example, the PLAYSTATION Network is going to expand. In a recent interview with GamePro, Tretton reveals that the system will become so expansive, "almost to the point of being overwhelming."The Network will not only feature downloadable on-demand movies, but it will also have a vast supply of games as well. "We have 41 games in development devoted to the Network, not just talking about PSone games being enabled. We're talking about games developed specifically for the PS3."So when is it going to happen? "So, really it will happen this fall ... we'll get there well before the holiday timeframe. Every month you'll just see more and more content on there it'll get to the point where it's be really rich by September. And I think that will be timed really nicely with the advent of Home as well."
Jack Tretton says PS3 cost levied by abundance of planned content
Jack Tretton admitted the high price point of the PS3 console can prove a worthy "challenge," but he firmly believes the content lined up will justify its cost. A quick viewing of hot titles shown at Sony Gamers Day '07 should easily solidify his claim. He also projected a boost in PS3 sales over the next few months, stemming from the upcoming releases of a few stellar triple-A titles. While no specifics were mentioned by Mr. Tretton, we've got a pretty good idea what those triple-A games might be, judging from the mass of excellent footage from titles we've seen coming from SGD '07. We're most excited about the implementation of Home and titles like Eye of Judgement, Heavenly Sword and Uncharted. After checking out all of our extensive SGD '07 coverage, what triple-A titles are you looking forward to the most?
PSP Store is 'long overdue,' Sony admits
SCEA president Jack Tretton has reiterated Sony's intent to launch some semblance of a 'PSP Store,' but his statements provide little assurance that the project is a priority. "I think the advent of a long awaited and quite frankly long overdue ability to deliver a downloadable service for the PSP will help us out a great deal," Tretton said during an appearance at Sony Gamers' Day. "Hopefully we'll have it out there by the fall."Tretton gave no further insight into the proposed venture, leaving us to wonder if he was merely referring to SOE's Station Launcher, a forthcoming service that will offer downloads of PSP-formatted movies directly to the handheld device (via PC). Of course, there would be obvious benefits to launching a portable counterpart of PS3's PlayStation Store, complete with PS1 games, demos, and trailers -- and, dare we suggest, full e-Distribution titles. All with just the flick of a WLAN switch. If only...[Via PSP Fanboy]
SGD '07: PSP online store planned for Fall 2007
The Sony Gamers Day event certainly offered a lot of PSP news, and the long since rumor of an online store was finally brought back into the fold. SCEA president Jack Tretton briefly mentioned the possibility of an online store for the PSP, followed by a quick comment that it should have premiered awhile ago. No other details except he hoped "to have it out there by the fall." We know Sony has the upcoming Station Launcher for movie downloads so it was only a matter of time before their libraries opened up wider to incorporate games as well. No official word on if Station Launcher will also offer games, or if the games division will have a new service altogether. Lets just hope the powers that be are heeding Jack's word and diligently working on making this a reality sooner rather than later. We want not just PS1 reiterations, but PS2 classics as well, so get cracking![Via digg]
Jack Tretton is unconcerned about PS3 sales
Any product compared to the runaway success of the Nintendo Wii is bound to feel some form of inadequacy. Yet, SCEA's Jack Tretton says he is "unconcerned" about the latest PS3 sales figures, despite the fact that every PS3 sold loses money and in comparison, the PS3 is still in third place. Mr. Tretton goes on to solidify his confidence in the PS3's abilities by saying, "we're into this for the next 10 years and beyond. A million units one way or another at this point isn't going to worry us." Mr. Tretton isn't alone in his convictions. Just last week, Wedbush Morgan's Michael Pachtor believed the PS3 will be the victor of the current console race, due to it's integrated Blu-Ray player. Will Blu-Ray prove be the victor in the next-gen HD format? Early predictors on sales might indicate so, but we feel our trusty magic eight ball sums it up best. Ask again later.
Sony makes price drop official; adds Daxter and Syphon Filter to Greatest Hits
The $30 price drop isn't exclusive to GameStop/EB Games--it's universal. But, that's not where the savings end. Sony has also added two more games to PSP's Greatest Hits lineup: Daxter and Syphon Filter.According to the press release, "We have always been passionate about making great entertainment accessible to everyone, and the new price for PSP, as well as the continued growth of the 'Greatest Hits' library, reflect our ongoing commitment to supporting and expanding the PSP community," said Jack Tretton, president and CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment America. "We are pleased that we are able to engineer savings for the consumer at this stage of PSP's lifecycle, allowing more individuals to experience PSP for the first time. In particular, we have recently seen a steady rise in the number of teens adopting PSP as their primary handheld entertainment system, and we expect the new price will accelerate that trend."Sony also reminds players that the future of PSP is quite bright, especially with the upcoming God of War: "Ready At Dawn couldn't be more pleased with our success bringing Daxter to the PSP platform last year, and now we have another opportunity to blow away expectations of what a developer can accomplish on a portable when Kratos hits the 'small screen' in God of War," said Didier Malenfant, co-founder and president, Ready At Dawn Studios. "PSP is an ideal platform for us to work on because we have a high level of freedom to be creative, and we can deliver gameplay experiences that rival ones you'd get from a computer entertainment system."[Update: According to Engadget, the PSP Entertainment Pack will also receive a $30 cut, from $250 to $220.]
Sony's Jack Tretton takes a bite outta... critics
What was that dog's name that said that? You know, "take a bite outta crime!" Was it something something McGruff? That's not important... although he was pretty awesome. Anyway, Jack Tretton sat down with GamePro and answered some questions about the PS3's progress, the competition and the critics. We'll summarize in a beautiful, crime-free list. When asked about communicating the PS3 as a multimedia device as well as a gaming console, Tretton says "I'll be the first to admit that it is not our field of expertise. I think creating the technology is something we do well, but explaining the applications of that technology is something we've gotta get better at." When asked about the media coverage of the PS3 and Sony, especially blogs, Tretton had this to say: "The good news is, [the criticism] isn't an accurate reflection on the success of the company, or of consumer's satisfaction [with the PS3]. I think if you talk to the million people who bought the PS3 in North America, you'll find overwhelming satisfaction." Overwhelming satisfaction is probably over 80% of people feel satisfied. True enough. Out of all my friends who have a PS3, including myself, the satisfaction is 100%. It doesn't matter that I'm the only one with the PS3. R-right? To make the PS3 a success, Tretton believes the key lies in never resting on his laurels (or the company's collective laurels). He also said "A lot of people in early 2007 are saying "Well, I don't need the PS3's technology." But we know, given where technology's headed, that they're going to want it. And they'll want to invest in it, and they'll pay more for it than they would with the PlayStation 3. You're already seeing it now, where people are adding new configurations to hard disk drives, movie players, and so on. That's technology that [we integrated into] the PlayStation 3." The PlayStation Network... it's free. No buts, no strings. Free. Plug in your PS3 and start downloading demos, play online multiplayer matches. Free. No signing up for some service. That's the main advantage Tretton sees with Sony's service. He also assures us it's in a very early stage and they are nowhere near where they want to be with it. PS3's price? Tretton responds: "I won't deny that $599 is a lot of money. It's clearly an investment. I won't tell you I've got [$599] in my back pocket. But I'm also a big believer in "you get what you pay for." SIXAXIS? "I don't have anything to tell you specifically, but we're certainly open to changing the Sixaxis controller if it addressed North American gamers." New PS3 model later? "It's something that's in consideration, but again, it's very early on in the PS3's life cycle." Phew. There's more we sort of grazed over, but these are the major points worth mentioning. Feel free to check out the interview in its entirety and let us know how you feel about it. Not that we're psychologists. But... how does that make you feel?
Sony hopes to resolve PS3 "shortages" by May
Apparently all the PS3s you see in stock don't really exist. Perhaps they're just empty display boxes, or Sony is just really quick to replace huge piles of the console; they sell out fast and get restocked even faster. But don't worry, you should be able to find a PS3 in a few months, says Sony chief executive Jack Tretton. "April or May is when we feel like we're going to catch up to demand and have product fully in stock across North America and stay there."Tretton continued by telling Reuters that the console was still out of stock in "some areas" and that the, ahem, shortages were "a testament to the fact that we've been able to manufacture and ship units on a greater pace than any previous console." Since we seemingly live in make-believe land, let's pretend Sony didn't even say this.[Thanks, Dolla Dolla]
Readers pick best webcomic: the $64,800 bounty
True, SCEA CEO Jack Tretton's $1,200 boast has been taken somewhat out of context, but it does make for some excellent satire. Enter Penny Arcade's Tycho and Gabe, whose comic earned the not-dubious-at-all award for best game-related webcomic of the week.Rounding up second and third place are Dueling Analogs and VG Cats, respectively.Congratulations to perennial entry RPG-TV, who is celebrating its one year anniversary. According to the comic's creators there will be guest strips aplenty, starting with Digital Unrest's Chris Simmons' comic. Other guest artists promised include the minds behind Dueling Analogs, Fanboys-Online, Boot_Error "and many more whom I cant mention here without making this sentence long and unwieldy."As mentioned in the comments on Saturday, all those comics were sent to us via the tip line will be included this week. Thanks to everyone who voted and be sure to let us know of any gaming comics you stumble upon this week!(Note: $64,800 is equivalent to 54 PlayStation 3 sightings.)
CE-Oh no he didn't! Part XXIV - Jack Tretton wants to give you $1,200
Electronic Gaming Monthly, in an interview with Sony's Jack Tretton in early January, mentioned the recent availability of his company's console: "...it seemed like about 50 percent of the people in line were there to make a quick buck on eBay. And now we're seeing a lot more units on store shelves." Jack seemed a tad surprised by this, but he put his money where his mouth is: "If you can find a PS3 anywhere in North America that's been on shelves for more than five minutes, I'll give you 1,200 bucks for it. I can get any retail buyer on the phone with you and get them to verify that there's not a single retail location in America where there's a PlayStation 3 on the shelf for sale. They've all been sold in a matter of minutes." After EGM let Tretton know they had indeed phoned 18 stores and found half of them had PS3s in stock, some stores with as many as 20 consoles, Jack held firm "if only nine of the 18 stores you contacted had supplies, that seems to be a clear indication that sales continue to be outstanding." So there you have it, Jack's not backing down. We're guessing our check is already in the mail.[Thanks, Corey B]
