Sony restores final downed PSN services

Though Sony Corp. continues to be battered by the hacker collective known as LulzSec, the company has taken one of the final steps in putting to rest the opening salvo in its security breach drama. Sony Computer Entertainment announced today that it has restored full functionality to its Qriocity service in all regions save Japan.

With the return of the Qriocity service, Sony customers can now access in full the Video on Demand and Music Unlimited services through the PlayStation 3, PSP, and PCs. As part of its partial service restoration in mid-May, Sony had previously brought back online Qriocity's Music Unlimited service for PS3 users only.

Today's Qriocity restoration marks the end of a service outage that began on April 20, when Sony brought down the PlayStation Network, ostensibly for just a few days. However, after confirming that a cyberattack had exposed some 77 million PSN accounts, not to mention an additional 24.6 million Sony Online Entertainment accounts, it wasn't until May 15 before the gaming company began restoring PSN functionality.

On June 1, Sony restored service to the PlayStation Store, giving gamers the chance to once again engage in digital commerce through the online platform. Sony has also begun offering a selection of free games and other perks for affected PS3 and PSP users. Sign-ups have also begun for 12 free months of coverage in Debix's identity-theft protection program.