Sony loss - "$1 Billion Dollars"

[Redlum08]

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10240672-93.html

 

I wonder if they will be rethinking their "FREE" PSN service now... Hmmmm...

[Fkacn_tt]

yeah and a wonder if they go bankrupt, will you pay the $200 for live

[Redlum08]

yeah and a wonder if they go bankrupt, will you pay the $200 for live

$200 for Live?? I don't follow your logic....

[disciple]

yeah and a wonder if they go bankrupt, will you pay the $200 for live

$200 for Live?? I don't follow your logic....

i assume  that is 40 per year now, seeing that MS have competition (free PSN)

but the moment that disappears, they will jack the prices up...

they may.. but they can't price themselves out of the reach of the consumers..

[Redlum08]

yeah and a wonder if they go bankrupt, will you pay the $200 for live

$200 for Live?? I don't follow your logic....

i assume  that is 40 per year now, seeing that MS have competition (free PSN)

but the moment that disappears, they will jack the prices up...

they may.. but they can't price themselves out of the reach of the consumers..

The price of Live hovers between $40 - $50 / year, if Sony (highly unlikely) goes out of business like Slaming assumes, why would Microsoft RAISE the online fee? Less competition? NO, they won't because they have a steady subscription fee in place that could NEVER cost more than the console itself...Sony was stupid to introduce FREE online, they are bleeding money...that's 1/2 a billion dollars right there in Subscription fees...

Their online gaming business model was flawed from the get go...give away free online, game support at the beginning was shotty, they are basically piecing together a frankenstein monster of an online community while trying to keep the service free, eventually charging game developers for downloadable content, I mentioned this before, someone eventually has to pay the price and it WILL be the consumer..

[W1nTry]

If only the Xbox wasn't so prone to failure XD the way I see it, with the failure rate as high as it was/is, Live should be FREE XD. If it was a ROCK solid stable platform then paying for Live wouldn't be even remotely an issue. Either way, time for Sony to introduce a subscription service and stop bleeding cash. Competition is always good for consumers.

[Fkacn_tt]

The $200 subscription fee was a gross exaggeration, but if M$ having a hold on the next gen console market of course they would milk it for everything they can. They are a business and a business is there to make money not to be fair. The introduction of a new live package could be a way to increase their revenue. 

[W1nTry]

The $200 subscription fee was a gross exaggeration, but if M$ having a hold on the next gen console market of course they would milk it for everything they can. They are a business and a business is there to make money not to be fair. The introduction of a new live package could be a way to increase their revenue. 

The way I view that, they can't raise prices as it's been as redlum pointed out around 40-50USD since inception. To raise it now would just PISS ppl off. A new subscription would have to encorporate features WORTH paying for (maybe integrating movies, rentals, arcade games and other downloadable content) might be a way, but they'd still have to decrease to cost OVERALL to make it attractive i.e. New subscription <= Xbox Live Gold+Movie+ArcadeGames

If they DO increase it... well we'll have to seriously investigate internet vpns for LAN play XD

[TriniXaeno]

Sony needed their online network to be free to gain traction.

MS was already the 800lb gorilla in the online market space.

It will take some more online killer apps before sony can make a smooth transition to a pay to play model.

Right now, if they start charging for the online service, as is, I'd just not bother and retreat to the PC for online play.

The online content needs to be compelling to get $$ out of my pocket.

I'm curious, would anyone pay US$10 a month for the playstation network as is?

[Arcmanov]

In a word?  Maybe.

I for one already stated that I would happily pay for a PSN service
on par with Xbox Live, in terms of EVERYTHING.  ESPECIALLY the online matchmaking/connectivity itself.

[TheApprentice]

Ok Live does have the edge on online gaming.

But if you count in all the new features Sony brings with firmware updates, that imo is enough to justify a $10 fee.
PS3 is 100% functionally improved from when it launched in 06.
And yea everybody would call me fanboy but of course I'll pay for online service.
Even if its $50USD a year.. $300something TT is in reality small change for an entire year of online play.


Also with respectz to the main topic about Sony's losses and PS3.
Software sales were up 80% last year > http://kotaku.com/5253450/ps3-software-sales-spiked-almost-80-percent
PS3 sales were also up as well as PSP.

[woodyear99]

I'm curious, would anyone pay US$10 a month for the playstation network as is?

It depends for me as well. The main thing I need is voice chat in and out of games. Texting isn't good enough. If they could get that working properly I wouldn't mind payin $10 a year. And if they could get a xmb friends list that I could use to join a friend's game (as in any game) then I'd pay even more lol.

[TriniXaeno]

lol. Texting isn't good enough is putting it lightly.

That whole interface should be scrapped and redone. It's cludgy and not fit for purpose. I'm using a wireless keyboard and that is still my opinion. Don't know how people on gamepads alone manage.

I wonder if anyone in sony's development team even goes home to play on a ps3 with their friends?

lol @ $10 a year. At that price, it would be a no brainer woodyear.

Triple agreed @ joining a friends game via friends list.

These things have been done since 199x on the PC platform. Why is a next gen console struggling with it? You would think the Japanese would know more than a thing or two about online interactivity as well.

I've yet to try the bluetooth headset. Maybe that will make the difference. Christmas gift immc

[woodyear99]

lol. Texting isn't good enough is putting it lightly.

That whole interface should be scrapped and redone. It's cludgy and not fit for purpose. I'm using a wireless keyboard and that is still my opinion. Don't know how people on gamepads alone manage.

I wonder if anyone in sony's development team even goes home to play on a ps3 with their friends?

lol @ $10 a year. At that price, it would be a no brainer woodyear.

Triple agreed @ joining a friends game via friends list.

These things have been done since 199x on the PC platform. Why is a next gen console struggling with it? You would think the Japanese would know more than a thing or two about online interactivity as well.

I've yet to try the bluetooth headset. Maybe that will make the difference. Christmas gift immc

Agree on all fronts there. Sadly while the bluetooth headset works well most people in public games either do not have mics or choose not to use them, resulting in games that lack communication and are a bit frustrating at times.....
Though when you find a good server with people using teamwork it goes real good.