For those who\'ve yet to check it out, we tell you everything you need to know inside.
Published: July 19, 2008
It was quite a shock when Sony revealed that the video service for the PSN, barely detailed prior to E3 2008, would be launching a few hours after their press conference. Now that the service is up and running, we actually find ourselves wishing it wasn't so damn full of content. With updates to come every day as opposed to the standard Thursday update for all other PSN content, it's only a matter of time before we here at TPS find ourselves slipping into the cold, unforgiving grip of poverty; there's a lot of good stuff up for grabs.
Sony managed to get just about every major company on board except Universal, who is currently aligned with Microsoft. FOX, MGM, Lionsgate, Warner, Disney, Paramount, Turner Animation, and Sony Pictures (surprise!) have all agreed to provide content for the store.
TV episodes are available in both HD and SD for $1.99 per episode, whereas movies are a bit more pricey ranging from $2.99-$5.99 for rentals and $9.99-$14.99 for purchase. Both HD and SD offerings are available, it will vary with licensing for each title. Rentals are active for a maximum of 14 days, although once you start watching them, the clock really starts ticking: you've got 24 hours to watch the title for as many times as you want.
How would you get to this section of the store, you ask? There's a new "Video" tab in the top left, simple as that. No firmware update or anything like that is required, which is nice. You can search in a variety of ways such as movie titles or studios, and the browse view also offers several filter methods. Anything you download on this section of the store can be transferred to your PSP as well, and there's no problem keeping it on multiple devices at the same time.
With movies like Cloverfield and TV shows like 24, the video store comes out swinging and if Sony sticks to its claim of daily updates, will hopefully not slow down anytime soon. There's also an exclusive anime series on the store, made specifically for PSN called "Xam'd", from the makers of Full Metal Alchemist. Is this the first and last time we see exclusive video store content? Hopefully not. We'll see.
Sony managed to get just about every major company on board except Universal, who is currently aligned with Microsoft. FOX, MGM, Lionsgate, Warner, Disney, Paramount, Turner Animation, and Sony Pictures (surprise!) have all agreed to provide content for the store.
TV episodes are available in both HD and SD for $1.99 per episode, whereas movies are a bit more pricey ranging from $2.99-$5.99 for rentals and $9.99-$14.99 for purchase. Both HD and SD offerings are available, it will vary with licensing for each title. Rentals are active for a maximum of 14 days, although once you start watching them, the clock really starts ticking: you've got 24 hours to watch the title for as many times as you want.
How would you get to this section of the store, you ask? There's a new "Video" tab in the top left, simple as that. No firmware update or anything like that is required, which is nice. You can search in a variety of ways such as movie titles or studios, and the browse view also offers several filter methods. Anything you download on this section of the store can be transferred to your PSP as well, and there's no problem keeping it on multiple devices at the same time.
With movies like Cloverfield and TV shows like 24, the video store comes out swinging and if Sony sticks to its claim of daily updates, will hopefully not slow down anytime soon. There's also an exclusive anime series on the store, made specifically for PSN called "Xam'd", from the makers of Full Metal Alchemist. Is this the first and last time we see exclusive video store content? Hopefully not. We'll see.