Sony won't block used games, says analyst

A widely reported leak from an unnamed industry source about the next iteration of the PlayStation came from "a monkey," according to well-known industry analyst Michael Pachter, of Wedbush Securities. The suggestions that the next PlayStation will block used games is just as unlikely as when it was suggested in 2005 that the PlayStation 3 would block sales of used games following a patent application, Pachter said in a statement released to industry news site GamesIndustry International.

It is "just a rehash of that old rumor and the recent one about the Xbox 720," he continued, before saying that the story's "reliable source is a monkey." The "consumer backlash" from blocking secondhand games would be huge, Pachter said. It would also be unlikely to help the firm financially, he said, though he did admit that it might benefit the larger publishers such as EA and Activision "slightly."

This backlash will prevent Sony, Nintendo, or Microsoft from unilaterally blocking used games, he said. While a multilateral move might mitigate some of the fallout, none of the three firms "are evil enough to do it together."

As well as a consumer backlash, Pachter indicated that GameStop--which he sees as the biggest potential loser in this scenario--would simply refuse to carry the console. This refusal would naturally hurt sales of the platform, he said.