shock
"SCE has secured the patent for a new disc technology that, if used, would not allow the PS3 to read used games for that platform. The technology was invented by Kutaragi himself, as well as two others
It is indicated specifically that the technology is to prevent the use of used as well as pirated software on the
Sony Play Station 3.
The technology involves actually rendering a authentication code originally encrypted on the game disk unreadable to other machines once the disk is used
This would mean that Net-based and other such games will not be the only ones to be affected by the technology
Naturally third software developers would embrace this technology, and it would ensure sales of the inevitable "Best series" for the PS3, but used games shops would be put out of business if the PS3 were to become the primary platform in the next generation
While information regarding the patent does not specify say outright that the technology will be used in the PS3, Kutaragi has gone on record saying that copy management is absolutely necessary in order to endure that no "Napsters" of the game industry create problems in the future "
BBC believed that the PS3 wouldn’t be launching until late 2007. They didn’t cite their sources, but the skeptic in us figgers the Beeb fell for Microsoft marketing hype. Today, however, we received a tip from a Microsoft marketer “former GameStop employee” that may shed new light on the subject. He asked to remain anonymous, but here’s what he had to say:
I worked for GameStop over the summer, and this came up during the Madden 2005 [2006?] Release a few months back, and “confirmed” by our District Manager, I’m not entirely sure how true it is, but if you do some research on it, here’s what you’d be looking for:
The PS3 is delayed until 2007, the decision for this came about through the failure of the initial hardware the PS3 Development Team created. Apparently, 300 PS3 Units were created and sent to various software developers to begin creating games for the new system. However, design flaws in the PS3 (Specifically, not enough coolant) caused the systems to overheat and meltdown after moderate
use by the developers.
According to my DM (District Manager), Sony went and fired the entirety of the PS3 Development Team for this flaw. In short, from what I’ve heard, if Sony gained anything from this experience, it’s minor technical knowledge on what the PS3 can handle, but for the most part they were sent to square one.
If the above statements are true, could such a monumental setback be enough to postpone the PS3’s launch date by over a year? And if so, how would the Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Revolution benefit from their newfound head start?