The service will enter open beta stage

Dec 1, 2008 14:01 GMT  ·  By

The PlayStation 3 was a very hyped-up console when it was launched two years ago. Its hardware is the most powerful among its counterparts on the market, and Sony has fitted it with quite a few aces up its sleeve, like the Blu-ray player or wireless capabilities.

But there's always been something that prevented the PS3 from being a worthy competitor to its main rival, the Xbox 360, and that is the online service. Although the PlayStation Network is quite popular, having reached over 14 million active users and being completely free, it still can't beat the Xbox Live system.

Because of this, Sony has been developing a whole new online experience, called PlayStation Home, which will offer users a virtual community in which they can interact with other people. The service has been in closed beta stage for quite a while now, as only users who received invitations could join it. But things are about to change, as the director of Home, Jack Buser, confirmed recently that the online service would enter its open beta stage, and users would be free to access it.

He then teased users and said that the Home system would surely be worth the wait, as it would completely change the way users interacted with each other online. The new system would also offer a new platform for the partners of the Japanese company to create content for, as they would see it as a very attractive new market.

"PlayStation Home is a new innovative service unlike anything else on the market and we have taken the time to make sure that it's a great service. This is a huge undertaking for the company and we want to deliver on what we've promised – a true 3D representation of the PlayStation community. What you see in PlayStation Home is just the frosting to the cake; we've created an entirely new platform for partners to create content for, and as an insider to what's to come, it will be well worth the wait."

Some very big words, which might make the wait a bit easier for users, who have eagerly anticipated this new online service. Let's just hope that Sony will make Home as good as it promised.