Your PSN Questions—Answered

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It’s been a busy few weeks on the PlayStation Network with several big announcements and new apps launching. In the month of November alone, we announced the launch of the NHL GameCenter Live application, the availability of Hulu Plus outside of PlayStation Plus, the VUDU app on PSN, and BBC America programming in the PlayStation Store. We’ve also shared a new episode of The Tester 2 each week and just last week we announced a number of new games on PlayStation Home, as we marked the 2-year anniversary of the platform. And, in addition to the PSN updates we’ve shared, there have also been a number of new updates for PlayStation Plus subscribers and new features in the PlayStation Rewards program.

playstation network logo

There’s no doubt that PSN is in the midst of tremendous growth as we continue to expand our entertainment offering. We recently surpassed 60 million registered accounts worldwide – an increase of 53% in North America in just the last year – and we continue to see our users soak up the new entertainment content offerings. In fact, movies and TV series purchased on the PlayStation Network video delivery service increased 42% compared to a year ago and we’re seeing that our users are quite engaged, with well over 70% using PSN weekly.

It’s been busy and we’re certainly excited about how far we’ve come in a short time, but the busyness has also kept me away from addressing some of your questions and there have been some great ones. I wanted to take some time before we ended the year to look back at previous posts and address some of questions that you have. I’ve also cleared my schedule this afternoon to answer any further questions you might have on PSN and about some of our new services and partners, so drop your questions in the below comments and I’ll do my best to address them.

We’re lucky to have such loyal users. Thanks for continuing to come back and please keep on sending us your questions, thoughts and suggestions. They are important and we are listening!

PlayStation Plus

Q: Field Runners was in the July 6 and the upcoming December 14 publish. Will content continue to be recycled? – ExPresident (December 1, 2010 post)

A: PlayStation Plus has circulated a lot of great content since the service was launched in June and based on what we think our users want, we’ll look to bring back some of those popular items. This will not affect our goals to bring new experiences and discount options to PlayStation Plus subscribers.

Q: Are there any plans to add a digital rental service to PlayStation Plus? – JacobeAbam (December 1, 2010 post)

A: While we don’t have any news to announce around a digital rental service for PlayStation Plus, our goal is to include a full game trial each month when possible, which allows gamers to try out PS3 titles for up to one full hour. Recently, we’ve launched full game trials for Red Faction Guerrilla, Warhawk, inFamous, God of War I, ll and Prototype, and we’re looking forward to upcoming releases, like Borderlands. And, don’t forget your PlayStation Plus includes access to PSP minis and PSone games as part of your subscription.

Q: Europe received the Fallout 3 DLC and Sam & Max season for free when we receive older titles. When can we expect newer discounted or free content? – Vengeance88 (October 20, 2010 post)

A: Content for PlayStation Plus subscribers differ for each region and that is dependant on a lot of different variables that aren’t always determined by us. Sometimes it’s our publishers that make decisions on how many or where to share certain content and sometimes it’s simply a case of where it makes the most sense for a particular game or feature. Having said that, we’re always looking for ways to extend the content we offer across different regions and hopefully you’ve seen that in some of the recent content that we’ve released, like the December 14th publish that included the upcoming featured download of the Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse season.

Q: When does the free three month promotion end for PlayStation Plus? – eatthemall (PS+ FAQ post)

A: The promotion that currently adds three months to your 12-month subscription is ongoing and users who subscribe to the promotion will now get 15 months of PlayStation Plus for the 12-month cost. If you’re not yet a subscriber, what other promotional offers would help you make the decision to subscribe?

Q: Can we have a progress update on cross game chat and any other features that will be available for PlayStation Plus subscribers? – xKOROSHIYAx (PS+ FAQ post)

A: I don’t have any progress updates to share at this time, but I can tell you that we’re listening to the things you want and whether or not we can release them now, we take all of the features you’ve been asking for seriously.

PlayStation Rewards

Q: When will the PlayStation Rewards program be available to Canada? – Chowbacca (October 27, 2010)

A: The PlayStation Rewards program is currently in beta and only available to GAP members and PlayStation Plus subscribers (who have opted into marketing emails as of October 24). If everything goes well during the beta period, our plan is to extend the offering to Canada in Spring 2011.

Q: Will the PlayStation Rewards program be available in Europe? – Coheno (October 27, 2010)

A: The other regions have shown interest, but we haven’t announced any plans to expand in Europe at this time.

Q: Why do trophy counts not affect the PlayStation Rewards program? I think trophy level should determine a gamer’s status in the program. – Mirauder (October 27, 2010)

A: The PlayStation Rewards program is still currently in beta and will remain an evolving program post-launch. Currently, we have incorporated the use of trophies into the Quest system announced earlier this week. Quests tie into more than just games, giving PlayStation Rewards members opportunities to gain progress from all aspects of the PlayStation Network, such as PlayStation Home, original programming and more.

Q: How long is the beta period for the PlayStation Rewards program? – LightAce (October 27, 2010)

A: We are expecting PlayStation Rewards to come out of beta in April 2011.

Q: Will the PlayStation Reward levels be based on games we beat from this date? Or will it include the games/trophies we have already beaten/earned on PS3? – cdsly16 (October 27, 2010)

A: The PlayStation Rewards program is not retroactive. It will take into account all the new games that you have played since the launch of the program.

VUDU

Q: Correct me if I’m wrong, but wouldn’t Hulu, VUDU, Netflix, and the Store all be competing for purchases of the same content on each and every PS3? – JBracin70 (November 16, 2010)

A: Actually, no. There are quite a few differences in terms of the type of content provided across the different services, the window of availability of content, and the payment options, etc. The bottom line is that we’re extending our content offering with a choice of partners to bring you the entertainment experience you want.

Q: Isn’t this video service cannibalizing on Sony’s current PSN video service? – Neil (November 16, 2010)

A: No, actually all of the different options haven’t cannibalized the PSN video delivery service, as proven by the 42% year-over-year growth. The PSN wallet and the compatibility with the PSN cards on PlayStation Store purchases have proven to be a great solution of convenience that complements our other content offerings.

Hulu Plus

Q: When will the service be available to Canadians? – Jeanse27 (November 4, 2010)

A: At this point, we don’t have any news to share on the exact timing for bringing Hulu Plus to Canada, but I can tell you that we’re exploring ways to bring our Canadian friends more of the content we’ve released in the US. However, it does bear mentioning that these plans are also contingent on Hulu Plus and when they extend their services to Canada.

Q: Any chance we can get Move support for both the Netflix and Hulu Plus app down the road? – Philaroni (November 4, 2010)

A: While you can use the Move controllers to navigate through the XMB, we don’t have anything to announce today for full support of Netflix or Hulu Plus. VUDU has announced that they will support PlayStation Move motion control with their new UI, VUDU 2.0, which will automatically update to your PS3 sometime this month.

Q: Do I have to pay for the monthly service with my credit card or can I use my PlayStation Wallet? – Rene_Led (November 4, 2010)

A: At this time you will have to pay for your Hulu Plus subscription with your credit card on Hulu.com, but we’ll certainly share updates on payment methods as they become available.

The Tester

Q: Can you consider including Canadians in your contests or at least run Canada specific contests? – krae_man (November 2, 2010)

A: Great suggestion, and we’ll most certainly be thinking about ways to integrate Canada and/ or Canadian specific challenges into future Tester series. Please continue to share your suggestions as we evolve the series, contests and overall experience.

NHL GameCenter

Q: Will we see similar sports applications, such as the NFL Sunday Ticket or NBA League Pass, on the PlayStation Network? – TABBYG87 (November 11, 2010)

A: We’re focused on providing you with many choices for your entertainment needs. We’ll continue to expand the catalogue of content you have access to on the PlayStation Network, however today we don’t have any news to share specific to NFL Sunday Ticket or NBA League Pass.

Q: Will the free NHL GameCenter app go away after the PlayStation Plus subscription has ended? – Dagger_32 (November 11, 2010)

A: The app itself won’t disappear from your XMB, but the free access to the app will discontinue once your PlayStation Plus subscription has ended and you will need to purchase it. As with all of the other content offered through PlayStation Plus, only subscribers will have access to the exclusive, free or discounted offers within PlayStation Plus, which includes the NHL GameCenter app being free to subscribers.

Comments are closed.

306 Comments

22 Author Replies

  • When are you guys going to add skype support for video chat for psn? Its been on psp for ages…

  • I would love to see pandora and vidzone on the xmb
    It would be cool if you could bundle feature in psn plus like hulu or the upcoming qriocity in away that you pay a flat rate for everything instead of paying separately

  • thanks for the update,been a G.A.P. user since 08/22/2002,now a PS plus user for 3 months and a hardcore PS3 fan since the PS1 days :)

  • My questions weren’t answered. None of them.

  • SO GIVE US PSP DEMOS, PLEASE!!

    Side note. While having the NBA, NHL, MLB apps is nice, but the NFL is MUCH MUCH MUCH MORE IMPORTANT THAN ANY of the other apps!!

    NFL!!!

  • When do the quests start counting in PS Rewards? My profile hasn’t seem to be updated in a long time…and I definitely downloaded every bit of Uncharted 3 and did some of the other quests.

  • I am running a sub-account. I made a sub-account after getting a PS3 last year, and didn’t know how the process works beforehand. I’ve tried logging into my master account, but I can’t get in. I want to buy PSN cards for myself and some friends, but I fear I won’t be able to use mine since it won’t apply to sub-accounts. Can you email me my login information, if you can or are allowed to?

  • iPhone/Droid app for PSN is my #1 request. SeanScythe also brings up a good point. A quicker way to retrieve mail would be appreciated.

  • hey just wondering when you are going to bring more ps1 classics to the EU store because im really looking for souidoken and iv heard its out in the u.s so please dont keep the games region exclusive because the EU have none of the true classics

  • A great feature would be to store our save files in some way, like Steam Cloud… just with the PS3.

    And unlock save files, or just have them locked to a PSN ID instead so we can continue to use them if our PS3s die.

    Please, add a ‘by price’ section in the store.

  • What I would like to see implemented is away to sort our download history. Right now I have 799 items and it’s a real pain to go back and try to find something that I’ve deleted and want to download again. If we could sort between ps1 games, DLC, demos, etc. it would be much appreciated.

  • FYI: Field Runners was released for the 3rd time with this weeks PS+ update.

  • Cross game chat: Basically this is Sony’s first online service. In the rush to get the PS3 to market, PSN was obviously not very well designed. It had just the bare minimums to make it functional. As a result, we’ve seen Sony trying to patch in functionality to get them to complete with the ‘other’ system (which has had a full blown online network for much longer than Sony). Cross game chat was never even thought about, and the memory and resources required were never layed out in the network’s foundation. It would be nice to see, but I won’t be suprised if it never materializes. Needless to say, Sony will make sure they don’t have a ‘make it up as you go along’ approach to their online service next time.

  • How about this question: Will NA be getting an iOS/Android App ala Europe? And will such an App enabling Blog access be hitting the PS3?

    I find it silly that we currently have to use the crappy web browser to access the Blog, forcing us to re-log in on top of already being logged into PSN just to comment. They should have an App for the Blog and maybe even the forums straight on the XMB. Something quick and snappy, like how much easier using the Store is compared to when it was browser-based. All we’d have to do is click the App, and we’d be able to see and comment on the latest Blog news.

    This would also give all PS3 owners an easily accessible source for the latest PS3 news, which is a good thing given how uninformed the average console owner is. You can even have Blog updates appear in the “What’s New” section, prompting them to click through to read more. That leads to them to the Blog, which leads to them to clicking even more news. It’d be a great marketing technique.

  • So basically the only question we wanted to know was whether Playstation was ever going to get cross chat and you did a politician answer.

    Can the ps3 just not handle it? As said before we are happy to have skype or something if that means just getting it to work temporarily or so like the PSP.

    I don’t expect cross chat to be this glorious thing like the Xbox but just something would get us off your back for a while.

  • I would subscribe to Playstation Plus if I got a promotional bonus added to my playstation wallet. Though the free offerings are nice, paying $50 for the service would keep me from buying new releases I really like. So a game voucher and dlc voucher or a $10-15 credit to my psn wallet would make it worth my while.

  • Why wasn’t I considered to be a Playstation Rewards beta user? I have like 23 platinums, haha!

  • Will the iPhone app allow for remote control of the PS3 like the Sony Blu-Ray app does for my Sony BR player?

    Thank you for the Q&A even though just as many questions remain unanswered.

  • Hey

    Why is the English canadian store not available in Quebec? I mean there’s a ton of contents on it similar to the US one but our store (the french one) sucks theres some movies here and there but mostly suck. I know it might be a law problem but if you already offer french content i thought you could give us english too. ( I want to watch walking dead loll)

    On another topic, will we be able to change our PSN name soon?

    Thank you.

  • Is the PS3 going to get Qriocity and answer this one ? are yall working on cross game voice chat just answer that yes or no already also netflix to ps home? i posted for ps share and aint got put up on their yet also is the trophy room for ps home coming still?

  • Thank you for clearing a lot of this up.

    It makes me pretty sad though that there are no updates when it comes to cross-game chat. I feel like that’s really the most important addition to the PSN that we need (as well as voice messages to send to friends)

  • I still havent been able to get Sam & Max. you guys said you would send a message to my ps3 inbox but I havent received it yet. Do I need to contact Sony?

  • Here’s my unanswered question: What happened to all the services and features that were in the survey sent out to potential Playstation Plus consumers over the summer? The only one that ever materialized was one I couldn’t care less about: Automatic Downloads. What happened to the 3 pages of ideas like token trading, cloud storage, etc etc etc. Make Playstation Plus something other than a discount club that only appeals to hardcore gamers that have a need to own 100s of games and maybe more people will subscribe.

  • Ha ha, I like the difference between your version of my question and what I actually posted.

    Seriously though, my question wasn’t limited to just “The Tester” contests, it was about the overall lack of contests and poor support SCEA and SCEC provide to Canada.

    Please keep that in mind.

  • Please answer this question.

    Can the Ps3 do Party Chat without having to do it through PS Home?

    For example, did Sony build the Ps3 without the knowledge of thinking about Cross Game Chat? The reason I believe you guys haven’t done it yet is because the Ps3 CAN’T do Party chat. It’s maybe the Ps3’s hardware or software and wasn’t just build to handle cross game chat.

    BTW Cross Game Chat = Party Chat

    Thank you if you can answer my question.
    syk1288

  • Could we have the ability to at least delete our 0% Trophy list?

  • I would really like for you guys to let me listen to my music I have stored on my HDD while I pay my games. I hate having my computer/TV speakers compete with my surround sound, it would be nice if both my music and game sounds came from the same place, especially if I take my PS3 to a buddys house.

  • I read that there is a Neo Geo app coming next week. How come this hasn’t been announced on the PS Blog (or did I just miss it?)

  • I think the only question I have, and the answer is possibly out there someplace, was on the PS+ trials. It seems that the full games are unlocked, but is there really only a 60-minute trial on the entire game? Or is it unlocked and we can play the entire game, at our will, as long as we’re PS+ subscribers?

  • Yes release more PSP demos. I would like to play a demo of The 3rd Birthday or otherwise known as Parasite Eve 3. The gameplay looks good but I’m not to sure about the story.

  • Q: When does the free three month promotion end for PlayStation Plus? – eatthemall (PS+ FAQ post)

    A: The promotion that currently adds three months to your 12-month subscription is ongoing and users who subscribe to the promotion will now get 15 months of PlayStation Plus for the 12-month cost. If you’re not yet a subscriber, what other promotional offers would help you make the decision to subscribe?
    —–
    Really?
    We want to know when, when does the 3 Months offer ENDS?

  • I downloaded all of Sam and Max yesterday (Wed) late afternoon in the northeastern US with no problems at all.

  • I live in a country where we get mixed region games and hence DLC becomes a huge problem being region locked. Possible to remove region lock from DLCs?

  • Cross game chat???

  • 1.How about a Pandora app?

    2.Android app like Remote Play. I can play my music,videos,photos that I have on my PS3 on my phone.Go to store to buy things.

  • @77
    “For example, did Sony build the Ps3 without the knowledge of thinking about Cross Game Chat? The reason I believe you guys haven’t done it yet is because the Ps3 CAN’T do Party chat. It’s maybe the Ps3′s hardware or software and wasn’t just build to handle cross game chat.”

    I’m guessing that’s exactly it. The bandwidth isn’t available. It was never planned to begin with….unlike the ‘other’ system that planned it from the start.

    You see how slow and laggy the in game XMB is….because that was never planned either and they kinda fake it by having it read from the hard drive instead of having dedicated RAM memory while in game (like the ‘other’ systems in game menu system). It’ll be hard to do a similar trick for cross game chat, but they might pull it off someday.

    Moral of the story….if it’s not in the original requirements/design of a system, it ain’t easy going back in and fudging it. The ‘other’ system had this stuff planned all along…Sony is winging it.

  • When Playstation Network (and Playstation Store) will come to Brazil?

  • LOL at the idiots like SgtRufus.

  • um finally cross game chat…some reply there but its not enough. Make it happen

  • NFL Sunday ticket PLEASE!!!!!

  • @SeanScythe: Pretty good summary. I’d add multipler account connected at the same time in games with full trophy support, and a big update on the web browser (if possible replacing it with chrome or firefox). And finally add beta testers to Rewards in Canada. I mean, I’m in MAG, I’m in Plus, but I’m canadian so I can’t access the reward beta, so no candians will participate in the making of rewards. This isn’t nice, I mean, they should simply fusion everything between canada and us and call it north america or something…

  • trust me they will never bring out cross chat or ps2 bc if sony dont make money from it they wont do it

  • 1. so many Canadian questions answered. I love it.
    2. PSN app for Android would be nice (like the one EU announced today).
    3. PS+ and Qore overlap is one of the reason I’m not signing up yet. Lack of control of content is probably another reason.
    4. it would be interesting to know the number of PS+ subscribers. I’m assuming it isn’t too high, since all of them get into the DCUO beta, and I doubt there are millions of people in a beta.
    5. When are we going to get a PS3 firmware update that adds new features (instead of security patches)? The last one the got me excited was the dynamic theme one, and that was over a year ago.

  • I just have one question that I think most of us PS3 owners would like to know…
    When are you going to fix the web browser?

    Instead of adding all these new app’s why now fix what we already have first?

    And Please “NO” Cross Game Chat!!!!! Teamwork is already lacking as it is…

  • You guys still asking for Cross Game chat, face it. It’s not coming out for PS3. They system probably can’t handle it. Sony is just dragging their feet until PS4 comes out.

  • Please let only US IP addresses use PSN,Home and the blog I’m tired of Canadians and foreigns just complaining about not having a stupid dlc or video on their regions.

    Also get an app to stream NFL football just like MLB.

  • 1. Is there any chance in the future that Netflix, and Hulu will be available for streaming outside of the intercontinental US. I live in Puerto Rico but streaming doesn’t work here.

    2. Will you ever add a feature that lets us play psp digital download games on our ps3 without the need of a psp itself?

  • When will PS3 remote control support be added to episodes of Qore?

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