Une interview intéressante de Ken Kuturagi et du vice président Akira Sato sur le Online et le Ps2.
Sony president Ken Kutaragi and vice-president Akira Sato fielded a series of questions from the audience following today´s ´PlayStation Meeting 2002´ in Tokyo. Below is a preliminary recap:
Question: When the PlayStation 2 broadband service goes online in May, what games will be available for players?
Kutaragi-san: One of the first titles available for the network will be Square´s RPG ´Final Fantasy XI.´ It´s up to third party developers to decide the release dates for their own titles. Certainly the number of games supported will grow from May onward.
Question: What about the problems associated with broadband networks, such as bottlenecks?
Kutaragi-san: Bottlenecks really depend on the infrastructure and the hardware being used, but as the network spreads, we anticipate some strain on the server side. We´re already working with IBM and Toshiba to alleviate those potential problems.
Question: Will the contents of the network differ depending upon the Internet Service Provider the user chooses?
Sato-san: No, the network contents will be universal. The service fees for accessing the network however will vary depending upon the ISP.
Question: What´s your target number of users for the broadband network?
Kutaragi-san: Ideally, our goal is to have every PlayStation 2 owner utilize the network. However, we realize the spread of an online services can take time. For example, it took six months before there were 1 million i-mode subscribers. We anticipate a low level of acceptance for the network at the beginning, but that will gradually increase.
Question: Are there plans to release a PlayStation 2 model with built-in networking components such as the hard-drive and Ethernet?
Kutaragi-san: From a consumer standpoint, there´s no difference whether the components are built-in or separate. There´s a possibility of bundling the hardware for sale together in the future depending upon demand from the market.
Question: Can you explain the Instant Messenger functions of the network, and will users be able to access the World Wide Web through the PlayStation 2 broadband network?
Kutaragi-san: The network will support an Instant Messenger service and will allow email to addresses utilizing devices such as cellphones and PC´s. We believe the network should be relatively open. Television´s however aren´t suitable for displaying proper HTML webpages.
Question: For the average consumer, what kind of initial investment can the expect in order to access the network?
Kutaragi-san: In order to minimize initial costs, we plan to offer rentable hardware for about 1000 yen per month. At that price level, I don´t think players have to worry about the cost of accessing the network.
Question: What percent of the PlayStation 2 software lineup will be broadband compatible?
Sato-san: That depends on the users and how well the network is received, that´s what developers will be looking at.
Question: What about the threat of Microsoft´s Xbox?
Kutaragi-san: Microsoft has made it clear that they plan to pursue a broadband network for the Xbox. Rather than a threat, we view them as partners progressing towards a similar goal. Albeit separate, we´re happy to be heading the same direction at the same time.
Question: For players worried about their personal information, what kind of priacy measures can they expect?
Kutaragi-san: Legally and morally, the outflow of personal information is prohibited. We don´t have a business model based on obtaining or selling such information, and will protect the privacy of our members.
Question: Will all broadband compatible games be supported through each Internet Service Provider?
Kutaragi-san: In theory, every ISP will be able to support all the broadband compatible titles. However, that may change depending upon the release lineup and the rise in users through each ISP.
Sato-san: It also depends on the third party software developers. Although a developer could decide to support only one ISP, fundamentally all games can be played through different providers.
