Gaming Market Heats Up as Players Duke it Out in Online Video

With E3 Expo currently taking place in California, it's prime-time for the gaming industry. And all three major console manufacturers have made some really promising announcements.

While Nintendo is extending its focus on family-friendly and physically active games, both Microsoft and Sony are duking it out in the online video arena. Both companies will be offering movies and TV shows for rental and purchase through their respective consoles and online counterparts. Microsoft has even kicked things up a notch further to partner with movie rental company Netflix. But which service is more enticing?

The answer is both for U.S. consumers, but neither for Canadians. Why? Because neither movie offering has been extended to Canada...yet, at least. While a spokesperson for PlayStation Canada implied that Canadians would be able to enjoy the feature eventually, Microsoft would only state that the partnership with Netflix doesn't extend to Canada. Indeed, to my knowledge, the Netflix video service in and of itself isn't available here, so that would definitely have to happen before Canucks could even dream of using it through their Xbox 360s.

Nevertheless, here's a run down of both services:

Sony's PlayStation 3 video download service will offer:

• Almost 300 full-length movies and more than 1,200 TV episodes from major studios like 20th Century Fox and Sony Pictures Entertainment; as well as exclusive content, like a Sony-produced anime series


• Rentals from US$2.99-$5.99 each that must be viewed within 14 days. Once playback begins, the viewer has 24 hours to watch it; and purchasable videos for US$9.99-$14.99


• The ability to transfer to and view videos on a PlayStation Portable (PSP)


• Full integration with the PlayStation Network


• Instant video playback


• A searchable database

Microsoft Xbox 360's video download service will offer:

• Access to Netflix's library of more than 10,000 movies and TV episodes


• Instant video playback


• Requires a Netflix subscription (starts at $8.99/mo.)


• Ability to fast forward, rewind, and pause video using the Xbox 360 controller or media remote


• Individual "Queues" where players can store selected movies and TV shows for later playback


• No additional cost per video

In addition to competing with one another, both services will also be competing with existing Canadian video download services from the likes of Bell and Apple TV. With either gaming console already positioned as part of a customer's home theatre system, and customers already actively visiting their respective online marketplaces for content like video games and movie trailers, Sony and Microsoft could very well have greater appeal in this area.

Meanwhile, Nintendo remains in a league of its own, focusing on creating 3D-like motion with a new MotionPlus attachment for the Wii Remote; and enticing new gaming titles that involve everything from beach and resort sports, to animal-populated virtual worlds where players can chat with one another and bid on friend's possessions.

Gaming certainly has come a long way from the days of two rectangular-shaped "paddles" and a dot we once called a ball.

[Photo: by Frank Lenk].

Sony U.S. to Join Streaming Movie Foray?

According to the Financial Times, Sony will soon be offering movies from its own movie studio as streaming video files online. There are, however, a few catches.

First, the movies will reportedly only be available for download by people who own a Sony BRAVIA LCD TV along with the company's new Internet Video Link accessory. Second, although not really a catch, is that you'll have to pay for the streaming version, which will be available in standard definition format (given current bandwidth restrictions). And third, from the sounds of it, the price you pay for that streaming version will also include a price for the actual DVD. On the bright side, there is one plus: you'll get the streaming version before the physical DVD of the movie is released.

While innovative, I'm a bit skeptical about this arrangement. First, the Financial Times report implies that you can't actually buy a streaming version of the movie instead of the physical DVD, but rather purchase the streaming option as a secondary method of viewing the film along with the actual DVD when it becomes available. Many people choose to stream a movie online because they don't want to have to buy and store a physical DVD, they just want to watch it one time on-the-go, or they want to pay a lesser price. Although no pricing information for the streaming movies was revealed, I'd bet they'll be slightly higher than a standard physical DVD, especially if you're forced to buy that DVD as well.

The second downfall is obvious: you can only stream movies from Sony Pictures. This isn't surprising given other Sony initiatives, like the Sony-specific Memory Stick flash memory cards, proprietary connectors for Sony Ericsson mobile phones, and dare I point out beta? (It's worth pointing out that there are other formats that gain other manufacturer support, like Blu-ray). This system has worked for Sony for some time now, so why not in this new, innovative way to obtain online content? On a positive note, some fantastic movies hail from Sony Pictures. Hancock, starring box office golden boy Will Smith will be the first movie to launch in the new streaming format.

It's important to note that Sony U.S. has not yet made an official announcement about this service, so take this information with a grain of salt. Even so, no such service has been announced for the Canadian market (no surprise there), so it's really a moot point for us Canucks at this time. (Note that the Internet Video Link itself, however, is already available in Canada for $300).

PS3 Slices Developer Kit Price in Half to Attract Game Designers

Last month, Sony dropped the price of the 80 GB version of its PlayStation 3 gaming console to $499 (from $659), and replaced a 60 GB version that was selling for $549 with a 40 GB version that's now available for $399. Now, the company is taking the price drops to the developer arena by chopping the price of its software development kit in half. This is an obvious attempt to bring more developers on board, and create more enticing game titles for the struggling console.

According to BBC News, many developers that had previously created games for the extremely popular PlayStation 2 unit have now moved over to the Nintendo Wii camp because it's easier and less expensive, not to mention arguably the more popular unit.

I'm not quite sure what has caused the PS3 to encounter so much difficulty in the market, especially considering how popular its predecessor was. Many have speculated a myriad of reasons: high-price, the inability to meet demand at launch, the fact that it came to market almost a year after the still popular Xbox 360, etc. Another reason was an unexpected one: the popularity of the family-oriented Nintendo Wii, which has opened up a whole new and untapped market for gaming that is clearly a very lucrative one. It is likely all of these factors that have made it tougher for the PS3 to experience the market-leading longevity that the PS2 enjoyed for many years.

As the Wii and Xbox 360 continue to ramp up offering, the battle for Sony to get customer's bucks will remain a difficult one. Microsoft just launched the ability to download games via the online Xbox LIVE service, which will make the '360 an even more enticing option for gamers of all kinds.

In related news, Sony celebrated the one-year anniversary of the PS3 last week. Rather than noting its current position in the video gaming market, the press release that was issued explained that "...the company is already seeing strong sales momentum as a result [of new hardware and pricing]; PS3 sales have increased by 192% at the top 10 retailers in North America."

The positioning of the PS3 this holiday season will not only help determine Sony's future success in the video game arena (with this particular console, at least), but it will also have an impact on the ongoing Blu-ray and HD DVD battle. The PS3 has a built-in high-definition Blu-ray player, and thus its sales have contributed to the overall total of Blu-ray players sold worldwide. For both Sony and the Blu-ray camp's sakes, I hope the PS3 enjoys healthy sell-through this holiday season!

Sony's New Digicam Doesn't Need a Memory Card

Sony is incorporating 4 GB (yes, GB!) of internal memory into its new Cyber-shot DSC-T2 digital camera. This means you can take tons of pics and video, then save the content directly to the camera instead of a memory card. On the upside, although the camera does also accept optional Memory Sticks, with 4GB of storage, you'll likely never have to buy one. On the downside: you''ll likely never have to buy one. Let me explain...

Don't you hate when you purchase something only to find out that it requires some sort of "optional" accessory to work up to its full potential? A memory card for a digital camera. A USB cable for a printer. Headphones for a music phone. Sony's DSC-T2 solves this frustration by incorporating an ample amount of memory into the camera itself. You can buy just the camera and truly be ready to go out of the box; and the salesguy doesn't have to break the news that the camera's 16MB of internal memory will let you save, oh, about 2 photos at full resolution. It's a win-win situation.

But wait a second: aren't accessories where all the profit lies? A retailer might make $10 off the sale of a $300 digital camera; but he'll make that same money off the sale of a $50 optional memory card. Will retailers see the inclusion of so much memory as cannabalizing accessory sales? If so, this same argument could be made for any camcorder, portable media player, or mobile phone that has a built-in hard drive. One could even argue that a waterproof digital camera takes sales away from optional waterproof casings! Or, on the flip side, will retailers view the 4 GB of memory as a good sales handle to sell more of the cameras (e.g. This model has 16 MB of built-in memory for $300, or you can buy this 'T2 for $50 more, and it has 4 GB already built in!)

I can see how 4 GB of built-in memory is a good thing, especially since the camera's price doesn't seem to be severely inflated because of it: the 8 MP digicam (which has advanced features like optical image stabilization, face detection, 2.7" touchscreen LCD, and ISO sensitivity up to 3,200) will reportedly sell for about $350. Not bad. However, I actually prefer using removable flash memory for a variety of reasons that go beyond price. For one, I absolutely hate having to connect any device to my PC via USB cable. It means I have to keep the cable handy at all times; and it's generally slow and awkward. I want to remove the memory card, insert it right into a card reader or my PC's built-in card slots, and be on my way. Second, I typically use the same memory card for various devices: I'll take pix using my digicam, then take that same card and place it in a digital photo frame; or plop it into my portable GPS unit. I don't want to be limited by cables.

However, there are other advantages of built-in memory. As one of my colleagues suggested, the 4 GBs of memory could be used to store video content (the camera can record MPEG-1 at up to 640 x 480 and 30 fps); while an optional Memory Stick could serve as the place to store still images. After all, a brand-name 2GB Memory Stick can be purchased for about $90 these days. So for about $450, you get a pretty darned good camera, and a total of 6 GBs worth of memory. Not too shabby.

I have to admit: when I first heard about this camera, my initial reaction was that it was a bad move on Sony's part. Retailers would hate them for taking away potential accessory sales, and consumers would say "no, thanks", opting for memory that was easily transportable from one device to another. But the more I think about it, with the amount of content being consumed and recorded on the rise, more memory, in whatever capacity it comes, just can't be a bad thing. And chances are, those who buy this camera will eventually end up back in the store to buy flash memory to complement the built-in kind.