Sony Computer Entertainment America is aiming to reposition the PS3 as the "total entertainment solution," according to Peter Dille, the company's senior vice president of marketing.
A giant fall and Christmas season ad campaign will place less of an emphasis on games and more focus on the PS3's Blu-ray and movie download capabilities.
Search: Start PS3
Official trailer
0:31Sony's campaign is all about searching for "Start PS3"
Search: Start PS3
Official trailer
0:31Sony's campaign is all about searching for "Start PS3"
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Search: Start PS3
Official trailer
0:31Sony's campaign is all about searching for "Start PS3"
Search: Start PS3
Official trailer
0:31Sony's campaign is all about searching for "Start PS3"
"We have been a game company for years and we would never walk away from that, but research confirmed there is a larger proposition under our nose," Dille told the LA Times. "We wanted to reposition as a total entertainment solution. We felt like we can really own entertainment."
While Sony's latest ad campaign will continue to target gamers, it will also be aimed at more "mums and families," he added.
Earlier this week Sony Computer Entertainment Europe also announced plans for a similar ad campaign, noting that the PS3 "is moving beyond gaming and gaming is moving beyond discs."
It's not the first time that Sony has marketed the PS3 as an all in one entertainment system. According to SCE boss Kaz Hirai, early marketing that positioned the system as a media hub rather than as a game console led to the PS3 having "a bit of an identity problem" and to criticism from third party game publishers. Almost two years later, with close to 25 million PS3 units now sold worldwide and the new PS3 Slim about to debut at a reduced price point, Sony appears ready to market the PS3's non-gaming capabilities once again.
A giant fall and Christmas season ad campaign will place less of an emphasis on games and more focus on the PS3's Blu-ray and movie download capabilities.
"We have been a game company for years and we would never walk away from that, but research confirmed there is a larger proposition under our nose," Dille told the LA Times. "We wanted to reposition as a total entertainment solution. We felt like we can really own entertainment."
Maybe it's me, but I've ALWAYS thought that Sony saw the PS3 like this - 'media' centre/movie player first, games machine second... *shrug*
Not a smart thing to do if history tells us (and not them??). It will still sell better though due to its lowered price, but surely the stuff like its features should be marketed as a bonus to a games console rather than the other way around?
Everybody with sense knows that Sony will always have great games coming out for PS3, due to their many internal studios. So in a sense, I can understand why they are trying to target other non-gaming consumers in their ads. As a gamer, I read magazines and trawl websites for the latest news, so I don't need game ads.
Saying that, I am sure that CVG has had this article up before, but worded slightly different.
I don’t even need to read the whole story. Please Sony, this will never ever happen with a games consol. Sony especially keep harping on about home hub but homes simply don’t function in this way. Most people have a pc for emails and pc stuff, a dvd player for films and a games consol for games. This is a simple fact. The odd single male may use a ps3 for all 3 but this would be few and far between. The blue ray function is a great added bonus when buying a consol but if someone’s watching a blue ray film, how are you going to play the latest game? Answer: you can’t unless you own a blue ray player and a ps3. also a ps3 in most homes is not under the family tv simply because of my points above. while we’re on the home hub stuff has anybody ever linked a printer to a ps3 to print pictures? Why would you when it’s all on your pc. Consols are for playing games, lets keep it that way.
Someone a few days ago feared that an article would be the start of a long string of annoying press releases from Sony. I fear that he was right.
I don't really care how they want to market it, I just hope that they don't alienate all of the third parties again like they did at the start of the PS3's life cycle when they used similar techniques.
Gotta say, I couldn't give a toss about Vidzone or the iPlayer. If they were marketing it to me and I was a clueless punter instead of the bastion of gaming knowledge I happen to be, I wouldn't be at all enticed by that ad. The US ones are far better.
Also I already consider, and use, the PS3 as my "total entertainment solution".
I don’t even need to read the whole story. Please Sony, this will never ever happen with a games consol. Sony especially keep harping on about home hub but homes simply don’t function in this way. Most people have a pc for emails and pc stuff, a dvd player for films and a games consol for games. This is a simple fact. The odd single male may use a ps3 for all 3 but this would be few and far between. The blue ray function is a great added bonus when buying a consol but if someone’s watching a blue ray film, how are you going to play the latest game? Answer: you can’t unless you own a blue ray player and a ps3. also a ps3 in most homes is not under the family tv simply because of my points above. while we’re on the home hub stuff has anybody ever linked a printer to a ps3 to print pictures? Why would you when it’s all on your pc. Consols are for playing games, lets keep it that way.
Agreed. If consumers didn't like single use 'appliances', we'd all oven tvs that played DVDs, toasters that allow you to poach an egg, and microwaves with grills.
The phrase 'Jack of all trades, master of none' seems strangely fitting here for some reason, even though the PS3 has more than functional movie playback, net capability, etc.
I thought they'd already tried this idea and failed miserably.
Inside a sony execs office.
Intern walks in. finds boss wearing a chicken suit. clucking to himself.
" come in boy i've had a great idea"
"whats, that sir"
"lets market the PS3 as a Media centre"
"But sir we already tried that and it failed, Why not try marketing it as a games machine. People like videogames and our devs have come up with some really good ones for this christmas too"
"No you cretin, that'll never work. people don't play videogames if the wiis taught us anything its that people don't buy games machines to play games or have fun"
" ok sir, so how does its an expensive blu ray player sound for a campian idea"
"Perfect bugawk"
This is why chickens should not be allowed to continue running Sony. We the public see the PS3 as a games machine. Its going to be hard to tell us otherwise after a decade of the brand being accosiated with GAMES. If it loks like there's no games coming out for it. No ones going to buy it.
Although we bash them for not focusing on the games, I suppose they have to try and advertise it as a media device. The fact that it's a more expensive games player than its nearest rival means that focusing on its unique capabilities (Blu-Ray... err, other stuff) is the best way to make it stand out. It is a good Blu-Ray player, I spend more time playing games on it (Arkham Asylum today!), but it's a nice addition.
Although we bash them for not focusing on the games, I suppose they have to try and advertise it as a media device. The fact that it's a more expensive games player than its nearest rival means that focusing on its unique capabilities (Blu-Ray... err, other stuff) is the best way to make it stand out. It is a good Blu-Ray player, I spend more time playing games on it (Arkham Asylum today!), but it's a nice addition.
Exactly my line of thinking. They just need to find a balance of adverts focussing on one or the other.
I've just come to realise that I've seen more TV ads for the PS3 (Blu-Ray focussed) in Spain than I have over here, even though I only head over there at Xmas!
Surprising in the UK, I have seen little to no PS3 advertising on the TV Airspace what so ever, I must admit I have seen one of two, I remember a huge ad for LittleBigPlanet, other then that though I have only seen some of the "Lesser" games, and not the real games that sony should be advertising.
It seems as though the advertising department at Sony, doesn't have it's keys in there pocket or something, or maybe the TV Airspace is Microsoft-Fanboys, as most would claim anything related to one company or the other. -.-
I don't really think they should be putting multimedia before gaming, i mean okay, the PS3 may bring some new and amazing games, but.. advertising those new and amazing games will give out a more serious note, then advertising "Hey guys, we've got bluray".
I don’t even need to read the whole story. Please Sony, this will never ever happen with a games consol. Sony especially keep harping on about home hub but homes simply don’t function in this way. Most people have a pc for emails and pc stuff, a dvd player for films and a games consol for games. This is a simple fact. The odd single male may use a ps3 for all 3 but this would be few and far between. The blue ray function is a great added bonus when buying a consol but if someone’s watching a blue ray film, how are you going to play the latest game? Answer: you can’t unless you own a blue ray player and a ps3. also a ps3 in most homes is not under the family tv simply because of my points above. while we’re on the home hub stuff has anybody ever linked a printer to a ps3 to print pictures? Why would you when it’s all on your pc. Consols are for playing games, lets keep it that way.
Agreed. If consumers didn't like single use 'appliances', we'd all oven tvs that played DVDs, toasters that allow you to poach an egg, and microwaves with grills.
The phrase 'Jack of all trades, master of none' seems strangely fitting here for some reason, even though the PS3 has more than functional movie playback, net capability, etc.
I disagree guys, there are a lot of people out there, like myself in the real world, outside of videogame forums who actually value the multimedia stuff
I love being able to stream my entire music library from my pc in my bedroom to my console to play through my Bose system, being able to look at my photos on my 40 inch tele is awesome too(admittedly I use my 360 for music & photos - prefer the interface). My girlfrind loves using vidzone on the PS3. Without these capabilities, I'd be stuck looking at photos on my laptop and listening to tunes through the tinny laptop speakers, orhaving to use headphones.
I'm probably going to get my dad a slim for Xmas, he'll never use it for gaming, but will enjoy blu ray and love having his music collection on the 120G hard drive
I don’t even need to read the whole story. Please Sony, this will never ever happen with a games consol. Sony especially keep harping on about home hub but homes simply don’t function in this way. Most people have a pc for emails and pc stuff, a dvd player for films and a games consol for games. This is a simple fact. The odd single male may use a ps3 for all 3 but this would be few and far between. The blue ray function is a great added bonus when buying a consol but if someone’s watching a blue ray film, how are you going to play the latest game? Answer: you can’t unless you own a blue ray player and a ps3. also a ps3 in most homes is not under the family tv simply because of my points above. while we’re on the home hub stuff has anybody ever linked a printer to a ps3 to print pictures? Why would you when it’s all on your pc. Consols are for playing games, lets keep it that way.
Agreed. If consumers didn't like single use 'appliances', we'd all oven tvs that played DVDs, toasters that allow you to poach an egg, and microwaves with grills.
The phrase 'Jack of all trades, master of none' seems strangely fitting here for some reason, even though the PS3 has more than functional movie playback, net capability, etc.
I disagree guys, there are a lot of people out there, like myself in the real world, outside of videogame forums who actually value the multimedia stuff
I love being able to stream my entire music library from my pc in my bedroom to my console to play through my Bose system, being able to look at my photos on my 40 inch tele is awesome too(admittedly I use my 360 for music & photos - prefer the interface). My girlfrind loves using vidzone on the PS3. Without these capabilities, I'd be stuck looking at photos on my laptop and listening to tunes through the tinny laptop speakers, orhaving to use headphones.
I'm probably going to get my dad a slim for Xmas, he'll never use it for gaming, but will enjoy blu ray and love having his music collection on the 120G hard drive
I'm with you on this one. There are far more people into multimedia, than there are into games.
And you'd have to be daft to think that games like Uncharted 2, R&C and GT5 won't have their own adverts.
Why try cramming everything into one?
Sony are quite rightly showing the features of the machine. And why not?
If it looks like there's no games coming out for it. No ones going to buy it.
See? Just as much a troll as grasshopper.
Grrr. Yes a mighty troll with a huge club made of the bones of lesser trolls. embued with bile and hyperbole, To make sure all that face it are crushed in a wave of unreasoned and unprevoked rage.
Hear me roar. bwaaaarrrrr. Gamers should just enjoy thier hobby and stop arguing over b******s like this roaarrrrr.
I don’t even need to read the whole story. Please Sony, this will never ever happen with a games consol. Sony especially keep harping on about home hub but homes simply don’t function in this way. Most people have a pc for emails and pc stuff, a dvd player for films and a games consol for games. This is a simple fact. The odd single male may use a ps3 for all 3 but this would be few and far between. The blue ray function is a great added bonus when buying a consol but if someone’s watching a blue ray film, how are you going to play the latest game? Answer: you can’t unless you own a blue ray player and a ps3. also a ps3 in most homes is not under the family tv simply because of my points above. while we’re on the home hub stuff has anybody ever linked a printer to a ps3 to print pictures? Why would you when it’s all on your pc. Consols are for playing games, lets keep it that way.
Agreed. If consumers didn't like single use 'appliances', we'd all oven tvs that played DVDs, toasters that allow you to poach an egg, and microwaves with grills.
The phrase 'Jack of all trades, master of none' seems strangely fitting here for some reason, even though the PS3 has more than functional movie playback, net capability, etc.
I disagree guys, there are a lot of people out there, like myself in the real world, outside of videogame forums who actually value the multimedia stuff
I love being able to stream my entire music library from my pc in my bedroom to my console to play through my Bose system, being able to look at my photos on my 40 inch tele is awesome too(admittedly I use my 360 for music & photos - prefer the interface). My girlfrind loves using vidzone on the PS3. Without these capabilities, I'd be stuck looking at photos on my laptop and listening to tunes through the tinny laptop speakers, orhaving to use headphones.
I'm probably going to get my dad a slim for Xmas, he'll never use it for gaming, but will enjoy blu ray and love having his music collection on the 120G hard drive
I'm with you on this one. There are far more people into multimedia, than there are into games.
And you'd have to be daft to think that games like Uncharted 2, R&C and GT5 won't have their own adverts.
Why try cramming everything into one?
Sony are quite rightly showing the features of the machine. And why not?
multimedia includes far too much stuff when we're only talking about a ps3. we're talking about what the ps3 is used for and how it will be used. and it aint going to be used as a hub by the majority of people
You just need your PC to be plugged into the same network as your PS3/360, turn on your PC (you don't even have to log on), then, as far as I remember (at work so no ps3 in front of me) you select media servers on the PS3 under the music menu, then pick the album you want to listen to or shuffle the whole lot.
Its about 3 years since I set the 360 up, but i remmeber it being way more fiddly than the ps3
The stuff you stream is the mp3s/photos/movies that you have on your PC hard drive.
Its the future! I don't use CDs any more, all music gets streamed from the pc in the bedroom to the console in the lounge.
I think if Sony had been blitzing the media over the last three years, then I could understand more of a change of focus.
However, I can recall LBP adverts and I saw one KZ2 advert. And that's been about it. So I think they need to push the other features - otherwise it could look like a games machine that is at least £50 more expensive than it's nearest rival.
There's always a danger with lack of focus with things like this I suppose. But then perhaps they lose one potential gaming purchase because they don't push the games enough, but then get two people looking for media hub.
But then again, if people are just using it as a media hub, Sony aren't going to be recouping much selling it to mums and families if they don't buy many games.
Either way, unless the adverts are total gash, it can only be a good thing for them.
You just need your PC to be plugged into the same network as your PS3/360, turn on your PC (you don't even have to log on), then, as far as I remember (at work so no ps3 in front of me) you select media servers on the PS3 under the music menu, then pick the album you want to listen to or shuffle the whole lot.
Its about 3 years since I set the 360 up, but i remmeber it being way more fiddly than the ps3
The stuff you stream is the mp3s/photos/movies that you have on your PC hard drive.
Its the future! I don't use CDs any more, all music gets streamed from the pc in the bedroom to the console in the lounge.
That's the way! The 360 is much easier if you use TVersity, it also plays more movie files than Media Center.
You just need your PC to be plugged into the same network as your PS3/360, turn on your PC (you don't even have to log on), then, as far as I remember (at work so no ps3 in front of me) you select media servers on the PS3 under the music menu, then pick the album you want to listen to or shuffle the whole lot.
Its about 3 years since I set the 360 up, but i remmeber it being way more fiddly than the ps3
The stuff you stream is the mp3s/photos/movies that you have on your PC hard drive.
Its the future! I don't use CDs any more, all music gets streamed from the pc in the bedroom to the console in the lounge.
On the 360, if you have media player on your PC it is very easy. Just go to sharing in WMP and if the 360 is on, it should give you the option to share to it. The Media Centre extender was alot more tricky I found regarding firewall exceptions and lack of supported formats.
You can use tversity, which is very good as it converts on the fly if the format isn't supported. Although the PS3 is supposed to be better than the 360 for this.
since NXE came into effect streaming too its become a lot less fiddley. Media centre still sucks balls though.
Know a good one i could use for streaming MKV files to either PS3 or 360. I usually just plug my external HDD in to either of em, but neither of them recognise MKV. wondering if streaming might fix it.
Forgive me, but isn't it focusing on the other capabilities of the console instead of the games that got them into the this position in the first place?
since NXE came into effect streaming too its become a lot less fiddley. Media centre still sucks balls though.
Know a good one i could use for streaming MKV files to either PS3 or 360. I usually just plug my external HDD in to either of em, but neither of them recognise MKV. wondering if streaming might fix it.
tversity does dude. It will convert it and stream it on the fly. From memory you can chose the bit rate it converts it at if you're lacking in PC power, as it can get a little resource intensive.
Grrr. Yes a mighty troll with a huge club made of the bones of lesser trolls. embued with bile and hyperbole, To make sure all that face it are crushed in a wave of unreasoned and unprevoked rage.
Hear me roar. bwaaaarrrrr. Gamers should just enjoy thier hobby and stop arguing over b******s like this roaarrrrr.
Movie downloads? Haven't seen those yet on the PS Store. And not that they'd fit on the pitiful 40gb HD. A bluray is, what 50 gb per disc? (If they're talking about streamed SD video, then lol. What year is this? 1995?)
And I'm still waiting for them to add a decent Divx/Xvid playback. Still around 50% of files aren't watchable.
Even so, PS3 is the best choice if you're looking for a Bluray player. And I guess there's some games you can play with it, too.
Grrr. Yes a mighty troll with a huge club made of the bones of lesser trolls. embued with bile and hyperbole, To make sure all that face it are crushed in a wave of unreasoned and unprevoked rage.
Hear me roar. bwaaaarrrrr. Gamers should just enjoy thier hobby and stop arguing over b******s like this roaarrrrr.
Just do as is say, don't do as i do... eh?
God No. I'm a cautionary tale of the dangers of biching on internet forums. I was the head of a multinational until i started posting on CVG now i'm a lowly quantity suveyor.
God No. I'm a cautionary tale of the dangers of biching on internet forums. I was the head of a multinational until i started posting on CVG now i'm a lowly quantity suveyor.
BEWARE! BEWARE!!!! bwahhhhhh!!!!
Nothing like boasting about your pretend job while spelling it incorrectly. You must be very, very lowly.
yes boasting! you really are a c**t aren't you voodoo! i mean seriously if there ever was a poster boy for the analy retentive know nothing sad act it'd be you.
Look ladies and gentlemen the biggest tosser in the world for all to see.
Who in thier right f**king mind would boast about being an office monkey. If i was going to lie i would of said i was the head of EA or Tim shaeffers personal assisstant or the BAss player from Coheed and Cambria not a quantity surveyor.
Do you really gift everyone else in the world with as little imagination as yourself.
yes boasting! you really are a c**t aren't you voodoo! i mean seriously if there ever was a poster boy for the analy retentive know nothing sad act it'd be you.
Look ladies and gentlemen the biggest tosser in the world for all to see.
Who in thier right f**king mind would boast about being an office monkey. If i was going to lie i would of said i was the head of EA or Tim shaeffers personal assisstant or the BAss player from Coheed and Cambria not a quantity surveyor.
Do you really gift everyone else in the world with as little imagination as yourself.
Thats the right way to go I feel. I use my PS3 for movies and the occasional exclusive. My X360 is a gaming machine. Unless i'm on PS3 with my mates but with the X360 on for cross game chat, lol. It works really well. The X360 and PS3 working together for my enjoyment. Sorry I didn't mean to scare the fanboys there.
it might be all well and good, sticking to the same position for ps3 media hub, but with a machine they lose money on for everyone sold, it dosnt make alot of sense. Its games that make your margins and there for, trying to sell it to people who wont be buying games at all, or interested in using the internet for downloading films or games or other media available, it will sit there and sony might crow about selling even more millions, but if no one is buying games, then their isn't a point in trying to market it at them yet. (do that when you make money on the machine).
sony don't receive royalties on a blue-ray movie, its on ps3 software.
it looks like sony dont really want to well this time around.
Gee I didn't realize they HAD been promoting it as a game machine all this time. It would need games wouldn't it? Why promote it as something that doesn't really officially exist yet? I mean there is not an "entertainment Hub department" at Best Buy is there? Give it some great games and make it a "hub" then you might have something.
Gee I didn't realize they HAD been promoting it as a game machine all this time. It would need games wouldn't it? Why promote it as something that doesn't really officially exist yet? I mean there is not an "entertainment Hub department" at Best Buy is there? Give it some great games and make it a "hub" then you might have something.
ahhh back to the old classic xbot claim "no games on the PS3", so wrong it's funny.
they should have a stripped down console, with no built in wifi, low hard drive space etc, like xbox arcade for smaller price ( around the same price as xbox arcade).
We as gamers might not like the fact that games machines are becoming multi media hubs,but this is the vision Sony and Microsoft and Nintendo have,Sony in my opinion are not far of from bringing out a PS3 Bravia television,Microsoft could partner Panasonic and do the same.Imagine the fan wars then.
We as gamers might not like the fact that games machines are becoming multi media hubs,but this is the vision Sony and Microsoft and Nintendo have,Sony in my opinion are not far of from bringing out a PS3 Bravia television,Microsoft could partner Panasonic and do the same.Imagine the fan wars then.
As Black Mantis pointed out right from the start they've been branding it as a media hub right from the start so this is technically nothing new so effectively you've all been arguing over an ad
i am a happy xbox 360 owner but would consider a ps3 now its come down in price, i would be interested in buzz for when friends come round, and also can the ps3 play movies i have stored on a external hard drive via plugging in the hard drive into the ps3 usb? the xbox has to do this via the media centre which is more hassle.
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Wasn't that how they positioned it from the start? It will work out for them anyway.
.
.
may reposition all ps-craps into the bloddy ocean!
