PSN Gamers Raise 1.3 Million Dollars for Relief Effort in Japan

Sony Computer Entertainment has announced that it has managed to raise more than 1.3 million dollars that will be used to provide relief in the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami from those who use the PlayStation Network service.

The company asked gamers who use the PSN to donate money as early as March 19, directing the funds towards organizations like the Red Cross Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami Fund and the Red Feather Community Chest Movement for Japan and Asia.

The 109.6 million Yen sum has been reached on March 31 and Sony is continuing to encourage PSN users to donate money for the Japan relief effort.

Kazuo Hirai, who is the chief executive officer of the Sony group and the president of SCEI, stated, “We would like to extend our deepest sympathies to those affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake.”

He added, “While we continue to make every effort to help the recovery of the affected communities in the region, I would like to express our gratitude to every single PlayStation user across the world who made a contribution to the effort.”

Other video game linked companies, from developers and publishers to consumer sites and fan communities, have launched efforts to raise sums of money for disaster stricken Japan, reminding the gaming world how many ideas and great titles emerged from the country.

Sony has been directly affected by the Japanese earthquake and the subsequent tsunami, with power cuts affecting the production of the PlayStation 3 home console and the PlayStation Portable handheld.

The company has also delayed the launch of a number of video games and says that it will take measures to make sure that other disasters will have a smaller impact on its operations.

Recently Sony also mentioned that the launch schedule for the upcoming NGP handheld might be affected by the earthquake.