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Sony launching PSP video downloads

PlayStation Portable getting video download service in early 2007 says Financial Times; participating studios not yet revealed.

When Apple Computer launched its iTunes service, many other big-time companies scrambled to set up their own digital music service, hoping to cash in on the new market. While other companies played catch-up, Apple progressed to digital video downloads--and once again it looks like Steve Job's company is inspiring others.

Sony will launch a digital video service early next year for its PlayStation Portable, reports Financial Times. The service lets consumers download a movie from the Internet to their PC, then transfer the file to a Memory Stick Duo. No pricing or further details on the service were disclosed.

The service will not require any hardware upgrades to the PSP, meaning the more than 20 million PSPs already in the market will be able to view the films. Sony's 4GB Memory Stick Duo will be able to hold about 10 full-length movies, according to the report.

No participating studios have been mentioned, but because the service limits piracy by allowing only one copy to exist per purchase, film studios may be less wary of licensing their films. Currently, only the Buena Vista Motion Pictures Group (Walt Disney Pictures, Touchstone Pictures, Hollywood Pictures, Miramax Films) has offered up its films for the iTunes video download service.

[UPDATE] Sony got in touch with GameSpot, and released the following statement on the news: "Beyond games, PSP and PS3 both provide an exceptional opportunity for the downloading and viewing of all types of entertainment content, including movies, television shows, videos and music. As we have stated in the past, we are exploring a number of options to supply such content, including working very closely with all the entertainment divisions within the Sony family."

The reply continues, "At this time, we have not confirmed any further news regarding a potential movie download service for the PSP. You can expect to hear more about downloadable content for the PSP and the PS3 in the coming year."

308 Comments

  • Speedy_dark

    Posted Jun 10, 2010 6:48 pm GMT

    ....My psps memory suddenly just disapear, and i cant play psp games any more but i can listen to musics and videos...

  • nevereathim

    Posted Jan 8, 2007 1:20 am GMT

    I only got FF7 Advent Children, cuz I would rather have a video game movie on my PSP than on DVD, besides i've seen it a bunch of times

  • JoePiervincenti

    Posted Jan 7, 2007 12:21 pm GMT

    It hasn't even been one month since this new article Steve...

  • Steve3D27

    Posted Jan 4, 2007 7:04 pm GMT

    "add a new topic here"
    this ones been here for at least a couple of months and its getting stale

  • Harvestbuddy

    Posted Jan 2, 2007 9:49 pm GMT

    i agree with WeAreVenom

  • WeAreVenom

    Posted Jan 1, 2007 11:31 pm GMT

    Boat3600, the UMD isn't dead... Look at your PSP games, they're on UMDs, so if the UMD is dead, that would mean the system is dead... Which it isn't, so therefore we can't say that the UMD is dead. We can however say that the UMD format movie is dead. Personally I think that the UMD movies would have done better if they had sold for cheaper than a DVD, and not for (what in may cases was) the same price as the DVD version.

  • DrSatan15

    Posted Jan 1, 2007 8:20 pm GMT

    i think its interesting how most of the people who complain about the PSP either dont own one or dont know how to use it properly. the RIGHT way to use a PSP is with 1.5 firmware so you can run homebrew games like Beats of Rage and various emulators, and then using devHOOK to emulate 3.01 when you want to play any of the NUMEROUS great games for the system such as Syphon Filter, Grand theft Auto Liberty city stores and vice city stories, Metal gear solid portable ops...the list goes on people. To top that off, you can convert your favorite tv shows and movies so you can watch them wherever you go. its really quite a remarkable device, unless youre a total moron and cant figure out how to get the most out of it.

  • OMasterBeefO

    Posted Jan 1, 2007 4:43 pm GMT

    I guess this movie service will succeed or fail based on the pricing (just like UMD). If the cost is equal to or more than a DVD, it will die. It's easy just to covert a DVD so you can play it on your PSP, AND have it to watch on your TV.

    I'd say a good price point would be half, to two-thirds of the cost of a DVD, so we're inclined to get it, but don't feel ripped off because we have a low-res version we can ONLY watch on our PSP.

    At the moment though, I'm filling upo on UMD movies because of the crazy price drops. $8 AUS for a full-screen resolution movie? Yes please! (Go to EB, everyone in Australia. They're chucking out their UMD movies really cheap! =D)

    Oh yeah, and it would be nice if their downloadable movies were 480 x 272 resolution, but judging by their quoted "10 movies on a 4gb stick", I'm doubting it. That's a REALLY small filesize for a movie. At the moment, mine are all about 700 - 800mb each at 768kbs and 368 x 208 resolution.

  • DeMarsVolta

    Posted Dec 29, 2006 9:02 pm GMT

    thats useless...

    many people can get music and movies (and all other kind of things) on its PSP for free... why would they want to pay for it?

  • Anti_Chaos

    Posted Dec 29, 2006 12:09 pm GMT

    [sarcasm] Redbeef, it's called an N-Gage. If you want a phone/media player/portale gaming device, get an N-Gage. [/sarcasm]

  • Unassigned

    Posted Dec 29, 2006 11:25 am GMT

    Movies in low-res... nice....

  • Trogeton

    Posted Dec 29, 2006 9:28 am GMT

    sweet and you dont have to spend extra money.. I already put movies and music on mine.. I have no need for this once so ever.. I would just love to have a 4 GB memory stick.. then Im great

  • herviross_2

    Posted Dec 29, 2006 8:44 am GMT

    Sounds amazing.....movies at the plam of your hands, although i should point out that the PSP is mainly a gaming device, not a multimedia player.

  • gzibocod

    Posted Dec 28, 2006 4:03 pm GMT

    A PSP MMORPG would be kinda cool!

  • BrodiMan

    Posted Dec 28, 2006 11:08 am GMT

    Sounds good to me...

  • RhysGamma

    Posted Dec 28, 2006 9:49 am GMT

    Could rival iTunes? Wouldn't be that hard, iTunes seems as if a 5 year old designed it, its garbage. Don't get me wrong, the iPod is awesome, but iTunes suck.

  • spellbinder22

    Posted Dec 28, 2006 9:17 am GMT

    i will be gladto download movies but as long as they r not over 20 bucks...i would rather get a dvd for 20, but if sony is reasonable and other things fit......sure why not.....i will donload

  • ethermay

    Posted Dec 27, 2006 6:29 am GMT

    wow. if only sony would fix its mistakes and include its features BEFORE it launches its consoles. because of all the crap and the lack of good fun easily multiplayer games. ( because its not the DS Lite) im ebaying my psp shortly.

    Enjoy Sony.

  • redbeef88

    Posted Dec 27, 2006 6:18 am GMT

    if only they can merge a PSP with a phone... otherwise i'd stick to ipods

  • DuVaN_s16

    Posted Dec 26, 2006 4:40 am GMT

    Very interesting! But Sony seems to really be jumping around... They seem... confused.

  • Boat3600

    Posted Dec 25, 2006 5:40 pm GMT

    So.... can we say the UMD is dead NOW??? I could acually see this working, though; all Sony needs is some even BIGGER memory sticks. Think about it: and 8GB could hold 20 Full Length Flicks!

  • thenedinator

    Posted Dec 25, 2006 4:33 am GMT

    Screw Sony... iPod and iTunes own!!!

  • WisdomLink

    Posted Dec 24, 2006 11:02 am GMT

    gl to them then

  • Hellisunreal

    Posted Dec 24, 2006 5:21 am GMT

    let see were this leads

  • especensor

    Posted Dec 24, 2006 2:20 am GMT

    i don't know but somehow, when a big company follow's another big company's footsteps, i just feel like something bad is gonna happen.

  • Kensai_Akira

    Posted Dec 23, 2006 4:30 pm GMT

    To follow others' footsteps is sometimes a good strategy, but why i always have bad feeling toward Sony since the launch of PSP?

  • dalejrgamer

    Posted Dec 23, 2006 1:20 pm GMT

    What happened to the good ol' days where game consoles and handhelds were made just to play games and not spam us on useless junk?

  • The_Weekend

    Posted Dec 23, 2006 8:18 am GMT

    PSP might look like a bust, but used correctly is pretty powerful

  • onlineps2player

    Posted Dec 23, 2006 3:17 am GMT

    So there's no need to PS3 for downloading...
    sounds great...

  • Hinduce

    Posted Dec 22, 2006 10:45 pm GMT

    It will be a koo thing but only if its free or even lower then the und's. You would need to get a much larger mem stick but thats ok. But please no rentals or hiden fee's. If thats the case be sure to see a lack of quality in the service cause its free. With the Marketplace you pay for the movies and the quality...lets remember that.

  • O13LIVION

    Posted Dec 22, 2006 7:10 pm GMT

    I really hope they come out with this. PSP movies are pretty pricey. And I hate all of you guys who keep saying the PSP is a rip. It's way better than any other handheld system out there. The DS has no chance.

  • pizzamanopenup

    Posted Dec 22, 2006 5:48 pm GMT

    Sony should really pull their heads out of their ASSES.

  • bow_hammer17

    Posted Dec 22, 2006 4:59 pm GMT

    All yoy guys are a bunch of **** talkers, and ths PSP is alive and kick'n. If you have a PSP you know how much movies coast and if you want to watch a couple of movies with out switching the UMD, or you forgot it at home and your out doing something, you're going to love to download free movies on to your PSP's memory stick. So I say sony should do this website.

  • nikefreak

    Posted Dec 22, 2006 12:34 pm GMT

    "psp n ps3 r cool xbox rips peeps off. "

    roflmfao... How bass-ackwards can you get on a statement? -.-
    How long ago did they promise this? How long ago did they promise PS1 games on the PSP directly? Sony has a LONG track record of at this point, saying things and not doing them, or, just doing enough to keep people from crying foul about their tactics... For example, the whole PS3 required to download PS1 games on the PSP is nonsense. And to those saying "It just takes time, Its just temporary" - Come on guys, get realistic here... There is NO reason to require an additonal 600.00 device to download games onto a PSP that has WIRELESS INET access and LOCAL STORAGE. It is simply another con from Sony to get you to buy into more of their products, which is what they always do. The PSP was supposed to get a Music/Video service long ago as well, but here it comes now, and who knows how poor the service will actually be (Remember, Over-promise, under-deliver, thats Sonys way, if they deliver at all that is).

    At this point, I am very very glad I sold my PSP when I did lol... But thats just me, it was a great system but was ruined by the overzealous company that created it, similar to what they are doing with the PS3.

    EDIT
    "Sony knows when to abandon something (EyeToy and PS2 Hard Drive anyone?) and the fact that they're still trying to figure things out for the PSP means that they still have some faith in it."

    Honestly? Its not because they know when to give up, its because they either...
    A. Screw things up so badly they know there isnt a reason to continue wasting money (PS2 HDD and EyeToy are great examples, thanks for mentioning)
    B. Never intended to deliver it in the first place, and instead was just bait to lure people into their product line.
    C. They didnt have a reason to continue trying then, as they had the PS2 as an overwhelming success... Now however, they have every reason to keep trying on the PSP and PS3, due to the fact they are loosing more and more market share due to above and other reasons.

  • Dualmask

    Posted Dec 22, 2006 8:21 am GMT

    PSP isn't doing as well as Sony hoped, I'm sure, but the system is far from dead. It's being outsold by DS of course but Sony has still sold millions of them. Sony knows when to abandon something (EyeToy and PS2 Hard Drive anyone?) and the fact that they're still trying to figure things out for the PSP means that they still have some faith in it. I personally love my PSP and I don't regret buying it. The game selection could be better but there are some really fun games on the system, and it's nice that I have the option of using it as a media player too.

    Fortunately I have the resources to support both PSP and DS so I get the best of both worlds.

  • Trogeton

    Posted Dec 22, 2006 1:12 am GMT

    I can already put any movies, games, music, pics emulators.... whatever I want on my psp I dont need any extra stuff I like to do things my way when it comes to stuff like this.. its either buy it or make it... unless I cant make it I will buy it... so I make it always no need for more buy... NICE

  • Pablo620

    Posted Dec 21, 2006 11:06 pm GMT

    scissor-face the games will eventually not need the PS3 to get on your PSP. Thats just for now

  • scissor-face

    Posted Dec 21, 2006 10:55 pm GMT

    So will this only work thru the PS3, like with hte games service?

  • hockeyruler12

    Posted Dec 21, 2006 7:25 pm GMT

    Wasnt Sony the one that criticized Microsoft for launching the Movie Downloads on the 360???

  • 1Wiifan

    Posted Dec 21, 2006 4:41 pm GMT

    It seems like a really expensive investement. Let's look at this way a 4 GB memory stick costs like $50. The movies will probably cost around $10...and you can only hold ten in a 4 GB stick! Doesn't sound like the best plan to me....

  • theKSMM

    Posted Dec 21, 2006 3:15 pm GMT

    It's about high time that they (Sony) get their act together. A media download service should have been available within three months of the PSP launch. For those of you who like to rip / download your content, be my guest--Limewire yer butts off. The rest of us want the cleanest content possible.

    I've said before that the biggest potential for the UMD wasn't feature-length movies. It was for CD-quality albums that include ED-quality video. It's easy for me to imagine having an album on UMD that includes a full roster of songs, music videos for certain tracks, and maybe other bonus features like a DVD. I'd sooner pay $13 for that than for a vanilla music CD with some backdoor DRM protection on it.

    That may have been a missed opportunity for Sony, but PSP-ready download content (movies, TV shows, music videos, songs) would be go a long way toward making up for the disservice thus far. (Oh, they should work on the PS3 too.)

  • Fehad

    Posted Dec 21, 2006 12:55 pm GMT

    In Church you are just weird man!!!!!!!!!!. Plain weird.

  • dragonfire28

    Posted Dec 21, 2006 12:32 pm GMT

    x rated films? you are a loser

  • tonkin

    Posted Dec 21, 2006 5:37 am GMT

    does this include x-rated films? i think that would be a hit!! then you could watch your favorite jenna jameson films on the bus, at the grocery store, in the library or at church. i say someone starts a petition for this:
    http://youtube.com/watch?v=x7Cig0--opg

  • sniper_99

    Posted Dec 20, 2006 8:39 pm GMT

    W00T!

  • ChemKill

    Posted Dec 20, 2006 5:43 pm GMT

    WOW >_> when will people understand that SONY doesn't MAKE the games. The only exceptions are first party games -- everything else is third party. If you want better games, complain to actual game devoplers. SONY is mostly concerned with improving selling and manufacturing; beyond that, they mostly work on the hardware/firmware side of things.

    Also, sony has stated that you will be able to download the PS1 games through the internet (without a PS3). They said this would come out later; so hold on a little longer and stop complaining.

  • seanito1234

    Posted Dec 20, 2006 5:16 pm GMT

    c now wat they need 2 do is put some FREE ( DATS DA KEY WORD FREE) GAME DOWNLOADS FOR LIKE LIMREWIRE N ALL THEM OTHR DOWNLOADABLE SOFTWARES.....NOBODY NEED MORE MOVIES WEN THEY CAN GET THEM OVER LIMEWIRE.....N THE PS1 GAMES BEING DOWNLOADED OFF OF DA PS3 IS F*****G RETARTED ........SONY U GUYS NEED 2 CATCH UP WIT DA PROGRAM CUZ ALL THIZ WAISTING TIME **** WIT MOVIE DOWNLOADS IZ OLD ......ITZ SO OLD DAT THEY ACTUALLY FOUND AWAY 2 MAKE NINTENDO DS PRINT MONEY NOW...LMAO........J.P BUT SERIOUSLY STRT TRYIN 2 MAKE GAME DOWNLOADS

  • Ratchetbuddy101

    Posted Dec 20, 2006 3:08 pm GMT

    Cool.

  • Christopher1Bub

    Posted Dec 20, 2006 12:45 pm GMT

    Ooops. Hey dgPilot00 I wasnt trying to argue with you man. I was just saying I read it on my feeds and was just letting you know. Here is the link. BUT BEFORE YOU GO FINISH READING. The article is about how Sony and Hp got the best market share but it had nothing to do with PSP. And yea that's about it. PSP still rocks though lol.

    http://news.com.com/And+the+Black+Friday+winners+are...HP,+Sony/2100-1014_3-6140131.html

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