Report: PS3 delayed until November

Coming hot on the heels of this morning's official announcement of tomorrow's Sony press conference comes unofficial confirmation of what it will be about. The Wednesday edition of the Japanese business newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun is running an article titled "PlayStation 3 Rollout Postponed Until November."

As one might expect, the article confirms that Sony's next-generation console won't arrive until the fall in Japan. Citing an anonymous source, the article says the reason for the postponement--which has been widely predicted by analysts and executives--is that the electronics giant is having issues with the Blu-ray Disc format, which the PS3 uses. Even Sony spokespersons have acknowledged that a delay was a "possiblity," should such issues arise.

"Sony Computer Entertainment will delay the release of its PlayStation 3 next-generation video game console until early November because the copy-protection technology for the Blu-ray Disc has not been finalized," reported the paper. No specific regions were mentioned, making it unclear if the delay was for the Japanese PS3 or a worldwide release.

While authoritative in tone, it must be emphasized that the Nihon Keizai Shimbun report is in no way official. Though Sony's last-minute decision to change tomorrow's event from a closed-door presentation to a full-fledged press conference augurs a major announcement, Sony is staying mum. When contacted by GameSpot, a Sony Computer Entertainment America rep declined comment, saying "we have not made any new announcements on PlayStation 3."