Blogs Does Sony Still Matter?

Totally agree with you about the unreachable server scenario etc.

The perfect thing for me would be to have choice. So if I want to buy a game, for example, on physical disk, I can move the install file onto any other storage medium that suits me.

The problem with Blu ray is that it wasn't designed to have any flexibility. The movie etc. stays on the disk, violating your fair usage rights and preventing you from protecting your purchase by allowing a back up onto hard drive.

Sony's attitude is that if your blu ray becomes damaged or "worn out" you can just buy another copy. Yes, they have said this.

I am the most careful person in the world when it comes to handling of dvds, yet I have had a few bad experiences. In one case, the supplied dvd case damaged the inside circle of the brand new dvd movie and left a crack in the centre when I carefully placed the dvd back in the case. The crack became larger, the more the dvd was used. This was not my fault. If I pay for a movie or game, I shouldn't have to buy it again.

I also prefer the convenience of having my movies stored and viewed via my PC hard drive.

 

Good point, I had forgotten to factor in DRM.

It seems to me that the future solution for entertainment media is a long way off. There are such problems with each that I really have no idea how they could be solved with everyone happy.

 

That's not only Sony's point of view, but pretty much that of the "content mafia" (INQ coins some of the best terms ) as a whole. If it were for them every piece of music you listen to or every snippet of video you watch would be on a pay-per-use basis.

As a side note, I recently got pretty malcontent (to use a polite word) when I noticed that many of my expensively bought CDs (as they're not mainstream, but not indie either) have gotten lots of small holes in them. The CDs from Polydor are the worst, but sadly not the only ones. But hey, I can just buy new copies... That was sarcasm, by the way.

 

I hear the sarcasm

One point about being expected to 'repurchase' your media, is that, especially in the case of music albums and singles, there usually comes a time when the product is no longer published and becomes very difficult to find. This is an example of one of the benefits of being allowed to make a back-up copy of your purchased media.

 

The thing is, the coating on a blu-ray is pretty tough - moreso than DVD's and CD's, so it you manage to break a blu-ray disc, you only have yourself to blame. It's a bit like deliberately driving your car into a wall and complaining that you have to buy another car! (or lose your no claims discount)

You are not really supposed to backup your DVD's either, but there are decrypters out there to do it - there are decrypters for blu-ray too, they are just few and far between, but it is a relatively new format.

 

That's not entirely true. The reason for the tough coating on BD media isn't a feature, it's a pure necessity. The only thing that protects the data layer is exactly that coating, whereas the data layer on DVD and HD-DVD media is much farther from the surface and protected by another layer (sandwich structure).

This extra layer works pretty good for DVDs but not so good for HD-DVD, which is also why rewritable HD-DVD media had such lousy quality. The laser just couldn't focus properly on the data layer. With BD they moved the data layer to the surface and applied an extra hard coating in the hope that it would adequately protect the data layer.

 

Certain drm circumvention is not 'allowed'. However, Copyright laws, at least in the uk and us, allow a back up of music onto pc hard drive. For as long as you are BACKING UP your movies for PERSONAL USE and not planning multiple copies to friends etc.

Yes there are software available to backup 'some' bluray movies, but the solutions are not supported properly via hd media playback software.

Also don't be fooled by that coating on bluray. Blueray data is more 'volatile' than regular dvds. This is because the data layer is so close to the surface of the disk. You are more likely to have data loss on bluray than dvd if the surface is scratched.

 

The last thing I got from sony as a Trintron CRT 10 years ago. I have had 4 of them and 3 are of the same model and all burned out. The only one left running is a high end 21" that cost more than the other 3 put together. I wish they still made them as I am not sure wtf I will do when this thing dies....

Other than displays such as the tv my roommate got I really do not see a reason to ever buy a sony device.

 

Sony is one of the largest and most innovative conglomerates in the world, and to question their relevance is highly arrogant and disrespectful.

Tell me, Alex, why Blu-Ray is not a key technology? Is it because storage is not considered a glamorous subject by technology journalists? The benefits of increased storage on a more durable format (I speak about both Blu-Ray and HD DVD) are obvious to any user, but the technology is not innovative for some reason. But when AMD or Intel reduce the process size on their processors the technology is suddenly amazing. Custom PC said Intel's Core i7 was “a radical new design and much faster than anythign [genuine error too] Intel has done to date”. Really? Did it change the way processors function? No. It did nothing innovative at all, but you said it was “great for everything” and you “have no hesitation in recommending that you visit your favourite etailer and buy one right now”.

Criticism of physical media itself (i.e. that it is outdated) is stupid [commenting about other users comments rather than the article itself] since Blu-Ray standardises more than just the capacity (audio, encoding, video and digital rights management to name a few), and the specification actually “creates a platform for broadband content service functions that will expand the viewer's way of enjoying content”.

Regardless, did Apple, Microsoft or Nintendo create a new high-density optical format? No. Apple are on the Blu-ray Disc Association's board (now). Microsoft picked the wrong side. And the 'Wii's optical storage is a “DVD based technology”. Those companies are so irrelevant, right? Or I am not allowed to criticise those companies because they do not compete in the market? Would that not be fair?

Your overall criticism is intellectually flawed. Your netbook example is bad (ignoring the fact the netbook itself is not innovative technology at all), and it is not a “good example of the company's problems”. Apple does not produce netbooks for exactly the same reason as Sony, but they receive no criticism at all. Sony's P-Series was only a terrible compromise if you wanted it to be a netbook. Regardless, does Apple, Microsoft or Nintendo produce a netbook? No.

I do not see why you think it is okay to attack Sony, a company who have a lot of fingers in a lot of pies, but refuse to criticise their competitors for the same thing. Microsoft have made a lot of mistakes. And Nintendo, well, they just decided not to compete any more. If you were being fair your criticism of the PSP should have mentioned Nokia's N-Gage too. They bought a branch of Sega, which helped developed the platform, and they too made exactly the same mistakes. So, perhaps, Sony's mistakes are not as bad as you think.

Apple have become less innovative by using Intel technology in their computers. And I find it ironic that you consider Nokia (and Palm) as “Apple's true competitors” in the mobile phone market. Surely it should be the other way around? Nokia have a global market share of just under 40%. If you just want to compare smart phones then Apple has 10.8%.... compared to Nokia's 41.2% market share. Your criticism of Sony's mobile phones strategy is not very good either since they were always marginal until they merged with Ericsson, and they have a much larger market share than Apple.

About the only thing I agree with is your criticism of their music players, though, and I say that as a MP3 Walkman owner! It would have been interesting if you had commented on their move to integrate brands across companies. They have mobile phones which use the Cybershot and Walkman technology, and this move has improved sales.