September 19, 2007
Kazuo Hirai, President and Group
CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment, Outlines Plans for Playstation Business at
Tokyo Game Show 2007 Keynote Speech
At Tokyo Game Show 2007, Kazuo
Hirai, President and Group CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI), today
made a keynote speech that demonstrated the strength and new plans of the
PlayStation(R) business.
Further Expansion of the
PlayStation(R)2 business In the 8th year from launch, PlayStation 2 still sees
steady demands particularly in North America and Europe. Reaching the remarkable
milestone of the 120 millionth shipment in the 7th year from launch, PlayStation
2 will have longer-tail business compared to its predecessor, the original
PlayStation. Targeting at further expanding the business into the emerging
markets, SCEI will continue to vigorously promote PlayStation 2, by introducing
more and more exciting new games.
PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable), a
Key Driving Force for the Growth Strategy for Overall PlayStation(R) Business
Strong support from users worldwide as well as abundant exciting software
line-up including million seller titles from publishers around the world, have
resulted in PSP hardware shipment exceeding 26 million units worldwide by June,
2007. SCEI will further enhance its portability and convenience for users along
with continuous cost reduction measures to boost the expansion of the PSP
platform.
Introduce color variations and
popular software bundled products to meet the needs of variety of users around
the world.
Offer users new entertainment
experiences that are only possible on
PSP, by enriching network content
and services in addition to introducing unique peripherals such as camera, GPS,
and "1 Seg" TV tuner. — Deploy market oriented strategies in each region.
With PSP, equipped with an
overwhelmingly powerful CPU and a high resolution large LCD screen for a
handheld device, SCEI will further extend the boundaries of game experiences by
fully utilizing "Remote Play". The combination of PS3 and PSP Remote Play will
offer PSP users more exciting and new ways to enjoy rich interactive
entertainment content especially of sports, RPG, and shooting.
Strengthening Software Development
Environment for PLAYSTATION(R)3 (PS3(R)) along with the Introduction of More
Software Titles and Unique Peripherals SCEI will be even more supportive of
third party developers by way of following measures.
Share assets and know-how built up
within Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios (SCE WWS).
Hold advisory board in periodical
basis to get feedback from publishers.
Implement various strategies and
sharing of information to enhance efficiency in games development.
Share SN Systems tool chain.
In a strategic move to secure
excellence in games development for current and future PlayStation platforms,
SCEI have acquired leading game developer Evolution Studios Ltd. and its
subsidiary Bigbig studios Ltd., to further expand its games development
capability as part of SCE WWS. Continuous cost reduction efforts including
shrinking the chip size and reducing the number of components. Cost reduction of
hardware is one of the most important challenges for our business and SCEI will
further accelerate this effort.
SCEI will continue R&D efforts to
accommodate to users’ demand. As part of such efforts, SCEI today announced
DUALSHOCK(R)3 Wireless Controller, a new controller for PS3 incorporating a
rumble feature, to become available in Japan in November as a separately sold
accessory. It inherits the basic design and functionality of the popular
PlayStation controller, while keeping the motion sensitive six-axis sensing
system. Introduction to North American and European markets is expected in
spring 2008.
Creation of New Business
Opportunities Suitable for the Network Era More than 2.7 million users worldwide
have gone on-line with PS3. The number of users that are on-line is steadily
increasing, enjoying the latest PS3 network games as well as exchanging messages
and video chatting on-line.
Gran Turismo(TM)5 Prologue will be
available both on Blu-ray Disc and as a downloadable content from
PLAYSTATION(R)Network on December 13th in the Japanese market. Gran Turismo(TM)5
Prologue presents a new life style beyond traditional game experiences such as
on-line car dealers and "GT.TV", an in-game service for the distribution of car
programs.
PLAYSTATION(R)Home PLAYSTATION Home,
a 3D on-line user community service, is currently under development to be
launched in spring 2008.
PLAYSTATION(R)Store in Japan offers
more than 500 entertainment content including more than 30 of downloadable new
games and demos, more than 300 of add-on game content, more than 100 "Game
Archives" titles for PSP/PS3 and about 90 movie trailers.
SCEI today opened
PLAYSTATION(R)Store on PC in Japan which enables PSP users to download a wide
variety of digital entertainment content available on PLAYSTATION Network via
their PC.
Future Possibility for PS3 With the
participation of PS3 incorporating super computer-like powerful Cell Broadband
Engine(TM) (Cell/B.E.) — and what will be even more powerful when connected to
the network — , Stanford University’s Folding@home(TM) program achieved a total
computing power of 1 petaflop at a single moment, of which 80% calculation was
contributed by PS3 users. With PS3, equipped with this powerful Cell/B.E. as
well as other state-of-the-art technology such as full HD capability and Blu-ray,
SCEI will continue to expand a new world of interactive entertainment.
