14 DAY TRIAL // In an effort to expand the profile of the PlayStation 3 and to further promote the console as a multimedia hub designed not only for games but also for movies and video, Sony has decided to unveil a new service called Vidzone, which will allow users of the gaming consoles to use their Internet connection to download music videos.
This is not the same thing as the much talked about service which will allow people to download full movies on their PlayStation 3 consoles. Vidzone is only designed to work with music videos and will apparently allow users to build and save a music library, then make their own playlists and even access the playlists created remotely via the PlayStation Portable. David Reeves, who is the head of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, also says that ringtones will be available for download for mobile phones through Vidzone. No fees have been disclosed at the moment and the new service is set to arrive early in 2009.
In addition to Vidzone, Sony is also planning to release, in the third quarter of 2009, a music download service which will most likely rival iTunes, but details are very scarce at the moment, mainly because Sony does not want to reveal too much this early.
The Xbox 360 from Microsoft has recently benefited from a Netflix which is designed to make the console a hub that can deliver, on demand, movies from the vast back library of the company. Sony is eager to respond with a similar deal but, at the moment, they are forced to rely on smaller initiatives, like Vidzone, to maintain interest in the PlayStation 3 while the video rental service is in development.
Many would argue that, with the Xbox 360 shifting to be more of a social console, as seen at the E3 presentation, Sony would do well to try positioning the PlayStation 3 as the "hardcore" gaming console again.