Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

SOCOM Fights Piracy On PSP - PlayStation Portable News at IGN

Seems like they're using SOCOM: Fireteam Bravo 3 as a test for a new kind of DRM so what happened with a lot of online games for PSP never happens again.

This particular game comes with a registration code, you just take the code that comes with the game and register it, just like a lot of older games would. If you buy the digital download version on PSN, the registration process is automatic (expansion scenarios were registered automatically for FFXI when purchased online, too).

However, let's say you buy a used copy. Shit our of luck, right?

Well, not really. Sony will sell you an online entitlement voucher for $20 so you can take your used game online.

This does two things:

First off it encourages you to buy new, without punishing you by withholding the offline game content if you buy used (which is how EA seems to want to handle this). If you pirate it and there's no sign of registry, well, tough shit.

I don't know if its a perfect system - it is a DRM after all - but it sounds like a smarter step in the right direction. Seems like this system really only punishes piracy,

[Feba]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

Well, not really. Sony will sell you an online entitlement voucher for $20 so you can take your used game online.

So you're only SOL if you want to sell it used to anyone with half a brain. Nobody is going to go out and buy a used game for more than pennies when it's going to cost them $20 to get functionality out of it (and it's SOCOM-- if you're not playing it online you're doing it wrong).

The better system here would be the same thing that would always have been for the best, for people who buy new and people that buy used. UMD trade-in system. Give up a UMD, get an online copy. UMDs can be one-owner only, and then allow the next owner to turn it into a digital copy. Keeps the used market from being totally fucked, lets people that are early adopters make up their large up front purchase like they're used to, and still afford it. Keeps the used market from turning into a profit machine which basically rents out games. Stops piracy, while allowing people that want physical, resalable copies to have that... if they buy new.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

So you're only SOL if you want to sell it used to anyone with half a brain. Nobody is going to go out and buy a used game for more than pennies when it's going to cost them $20 to get functionality out of it (and it's SOCOM-- if you're not playing it online you're doing it wrong).

The better system here would be the same thing that would always have been for the best, for people who buy new and people that buy used. UMD trade-in system. Give up a UMD, get an online copy. UMDs can be one-owner only, and then allow the next owner to turn it into a digital copy. Keeps the used market from being totally fucked, lets people that are early adopters make up their large up front purchase like they're used to, and still afford it. Keeps the used market from turning into a profit machine which basically rents out games. Stops piracy, while allowing people that want physical, resalable copies to have that... if they buy new.

I'm not saying I agree with the price, but its quite a bit more airtight than your ideal scenario. Sony's method doesn't require retailers to pay into a new distribution model that will cost the retailer some extra revenue to support. What you're advocating would crush smaller retailers and assumes there can be a digital version of what's being traded in.

Sony's version won't harm the smaller retailer directly, especially if its only in regard to online titles. Smaller retailers can afford to be a bit more discouraging about what gets traded in, too. No retailer has to accept a game for trade-in, after all.

[Feba]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

Sony's method doesn't require retailers to pay into a new distribution model that will cost the retailer some extra revenue to support.

Neither does mine.

If you're worried about smaller retailers, worry about the ones that suddenly lose all of the online used games because nobody will sell their nearly-new game for pennies, and nobody will buy it for more than a few dollars when they have to pay $20 to get it working.

[Malacite]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

$20? Christ, the used price is going to have to be significantly lower, which I just don't see happening. EB/Gamestop = greedy mother fuckers taking games for like 10~20 and then selling them back 50~60+....

[ShepardG]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

"Sony Grows a brain"

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

Neither does mine.

If you're worried about smaller retailers, worry about the ones that suddenly lose all of the online used games because nobody will sell their nearly-new game for pennies, and nobody will buy it for more than a few dollars when they have to pay $20 to get it working.

Your model assumes a retailer that deals in used could supply a voucher for any game on PSP that I traded in. Have a look at all the PSP games that aren't on PSN, though.

Really, though, how many people buy a used game with the intention of taking it online? These days, games are rigged with exclusives as another means to buy used.

If you think what Sony's doing for a PSP game is extreme, look at what EA has planned for the rest of this year. That lame DLC model people had to go through to unlock DLC for Dragon Age and Mass Effect 2 - turns out EA was using them to test the market for their new model.

See, EA took some financial risks and they also know that in this economy we're even more inclined to buy used. EA games tend to depreciate faster than most, so they don't like us doing that since the depreciation might keep us from getting the next game new.

So they withhold content. Why? Well, they say to encourage you to buy new, but that's just sugarcoating it, they just don't like used cutting into their sales. So they kneecap their own game until you've handed over some personal information. Totally sure EA keeps you email addy all hush-hush, too.

$20? Christ, the used price is going to have to be significantly lower, which I just don't see happening. EB/Gamestop = greedy mother fuckers taking games for like 10~20 and then selling them back 50~60+....

Again, Sony is trying this out on a particular type of game that pirates would gravitate to stealing just to play it online. You're making this sound like they already have it planned for PS3 when its one game on PSP. You need look no further than prior SCEA and SCEE titles to see why they're doing this.

So, really, we don't know how they'd apply this to something like PS3. Let's not jump to conclusions that they are planning such things.

[Takelli]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

However, let's say you buy a used copy. Shit our of luck, right?

Well, not really. Sony will sell you an online entitlement voucher for $20 so you can take your used game online.

... Isn't the reason as to why people buy used games to save some money? Then if you buy a use game and want to play it online, you wil need to pay 20$ for the code? Wouldn't that just bring the price back up to the original price?

I could see this causing a lot of issues for people that wish to save some money, and still play games...

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

... Isn't the reason as to why people buy used games to save some money? Then if you buy a use game and want to play it online, you wil need to pay 20$ for the code? Wouldn't that just bring the price back up to the original price?

I could see this causing a lot of issues for people that wish to save some money, and still play games...

Darkseid doesn't want to you to save money. To die in financial ruin is to die for Darkseid.

[Feba]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

Your model assumes a retailer that deals in used could supply a voucher for any game on PSP that I traded in.

No, it doesn't. It assumes Sony gets off their ass, puts PSP games on PSN, and takes UMD trade ins for download credits. The only point retailers come into the equation is selling the used title, and maybe Sony reselling the UMDs they collect to the used market.

If you think what Sony's doing for a PSP game is extreme

Oh, I don't think it's extreme, I just think it's incredibly stupid, inefficient, and avoiding the option that would be best for everyone. I don't think they can maintain such a high price point though-- especially if there is a way you can lose the access that comes with your UMD. It's very conceivable that this might even encourage piracy as a sort of 'instant %50 off' method. If it's $40 for a new, legitimate game, or $20 for a pirated, but still licensed in some form game, which are most people going to pick?

[Karinya]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

If someone buys 3-4 used games instead of 1 new one, it's good for the buyer, good for the sellers and good for the retailer. And bad for the publisher, which is why publishers have been plotting to kill used markets for decades (first books and music, now video games too).

Maybe it will work, maybe it won't, but DRM usually turns out badly, so I'm betting that it will strangle the games it is applied to.

[Mhurron]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

... Isn't the reason as to why people buy used games to save some money? Then if you buy a use game and want to play it online, you wil need to pay 20$ for the code? Wouldn't that just bring the price back up to the original price?

Pretty much. The point of this is to kill second hand sales, not curb piracy.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

Pretty much. The point of this is to kill second hand sales, not curb piracy.

Would you rather have publishers selling incomplete games to curb piracy? Because that's what they do now and I think its the lowest thing you can do. And its totally to curb used sales, thats not going to do anything to piracy.

And because gamers just bend over and take it, they're going to be doing this more and more. Gamers are willingly killing the used market this way at present because they have no willpower to resist the latest shiny disc they can put in their consoles.

Publishers are waging a war on two fronts, really. They don't like the legality of used in the west, so they can only try to discourage it. Piracy happens everywhere, even with games that cost 99 cents on iPhone.

I think piracy will always rise so long as there's two fronts the publishers have to fight on. As nice as used is, we may soon see a future where that's not a option for software.

At least what Sony's doing here is keeping pirates out of online play. Given that's the attraction of something like SOCOM, that's an important point to win on.

No, it doesn't. It assumes Sony gets off their ass, puts PSP games on PSN, and takes UMD trade ins for download credits. The only point retailers come into the equation is selling the used title, and maybe Sony reselling the UMDs they collect to the used market.

You're assuming all it takes is Sony to wave a wand and all the games will come to PSN. Its a bit more complex than that.

You're assuming that retailers and publishers are going to buy into the notion that they can accept a trade-in, give you a voucher for a digital download version [i]and/[i] store credit toward for the game you've traded in. What's really happening there is now the consumer increases market saturation and the rate of depreciation. The more there is of something out there, the cheaper it should be. So, essentially, your scenario kills used just as bad and the the scenario you're drawing conclusions about.

If I'm going to be able to have a copy and back it up on my PS3 or PSP - which I can do now so long as they're linked by account, I can turn around and sell my physical copy before it starts to depreciate further. You think I would be the only one to think of that, thought? Guess what happens when the flood of games comes back to the retailer.

Not even Gamestop is going to be able to sell all that restock for close to new like they usually do and if its a popular title, they're not going to be able to ship it around to other stores to keep the shelf space they need, which is what they usually do.

[Feba]

Re: Sony Grows a brain regarding PSP piracy?

You're assuming all it takes is Sony to wave a wand and all the games will come to PSN. Its a bit more complex than that.

Again, I'm not. They could just add this service for games on PSN-- as all PSP games post GO should be.

You're assuming that retailers and publishers are going to buy into the notion that they can accept a trade-in

Again, I'm not. I'm talking about Sony offering this service, retailers don't need to be involved. And I never said anything about getting a download voucher and store credit, that would just be silly.

If I'm going to be able to have a copy and back it up on my PS3 or PSP - which I can do now so long as they're linked by account, I can turn around and sell my physical copy before it starts to depreciate further.

I haven't even mentioned backups. Even then, there's an easy work around for this-- have digital backups linked to the PSN account during backup (which Sony could easily provide for in an update to the Media Center thing they have for managing PSPs; just have a UMD-ripper with PSN-linked DRM built in), and then require the disk to be checked after every X days since it was last checked, or every X hours of game time. This wouldn't be any more exploitable than the age-old practice of lending things to friends or the totally-permitted system of sharing a PSN account.

Also, when I say used market, I don't really give two shits about gamestop. They give consumers laughably low payments for games that are newly released, and then turn around and price them for a few dollars short of new. That's not a market, that's abusing your monopoly. I'm talking about the smaller mom and pop stores, pawn shops, and direct sale sites like CAG; and to a lesser extent, Goozex. Gamestop can go rot in a hole, and the industry would be all the better for it-- but destroying the used market would stop a lot of people from buying games when they're first released, which is a big marker for how successful a game will be, if the price should be lowered (and made less profitable), etc. All companies are not Nintendo, they can't leave their games at $50 for six months hoping that sales pick up. I've seen a game I was looking forward to-- and bought new at $50-- dip down to $20 within a few short weeks. That's a flop, and that's not good for developers.