Ozymandias

Possible Sony Rude Q&A Examined

Pretty interesting timing on this, after my "For what it’s worth, I’d really hate to be the PR/marketing guy trying to come up with the side-by-side comparison checklist at Sony" comment yesterday. Spong published what appears to be a Rude Q&A (or pre-prepared talking points around tough questions that journalists might ask) for the Playstation 3. While there's no way to validate its authenticity, my personal gut is that it feels about right. One of the most telling points? Check out the answers to some of the tougher questions. You'll notice a pattern of either ducking the question or answering vaguely and then trying to redirect to more positive talking points.

Here are some examples that popped for me:

Q9. When will you start manufacturing PS3?
A9. We will start assembly from summer. Manufacturing of the main semiconductors has already started.

A good, basic, but vague answer here. "We'll be building in summer (and a long summer it might be!), but hey - we're building semiconductors now!" In their defense, there are a lot of moving parts involved in trying to make a console, and it's very hard to be definite on dates. However, don't expect this to be clarified until much later, probably with a "we've shipped over X million units to stores" sort of announcement.

Ooh - here's a good one:

Q10. MS's Xbox360 was launched a year ago and has a head start. How do you feel about it?
A10. We have set the best launch timing for PS3.

How do we feel about it? We don't! Nice duck. And really, what could you say here? It's a no-win question, so it's avoided.

Some other fun ones around the PS3 Network service, and its relation to Xbox Live.

Q11. How is the PS3 network service going to be? Will you also start the service from day one? What are the differences between Xbox Live and PS3 network services?
A11. Apart from providing basic features and functions, the most important element is content and services. Downloading music in SingStar, purchasing or exchanging game data as we demonstrated at E3 press conference and many other new ways of enjoyment will be provided.

No real answers here. Notice the questions of A) what the service is about (read: features), B) whether it will be available day 1 of launch, and C) how it's different from Xbox Live are completely ducked. All that's really said is that you'll be able to download music in Singstar (only? interesting question, that...), and that you'll be able to do other things. This one is a great example of a tough question that just can't be answered. Their service is years late (if you buy the argument that there should have been something like it for the Playstation 2), and Sony will be hugely challenged to deliver anything remotely resembling Xbox Live in the short time they have before launch. What's much more likely to happen is that we'll see a very basic authentication/messaging service at launch with basic multiplayer, and then upgrades over time.

Here's another fun one around online play:

Q12. Will the network service be charged?
A12. Basic services available free for current PCs will be free of charge but content and specific services will be charged from the beginning.

Notice the fine, hand-crafted wording here. The question very explictly does not ask whether online play will be charged or free (which is the key question that's been getting ducked since E3). Instead the term "network service" is used, which could be defined (after the fact) as almost anything. What's more, notice the answer to the already softball question? "Basic services available free for current PCs will be free of charge but content and specific services will be charged from the beginning."

Try to define a "basic service" in PC gaming? Is there a standard we can compare to? Could it be Login or Authentication? Messaging? Matchmaking? Content download? Multi-player play? It's likely you can find at least one PC title for each of those that charges for the feature, which leaves a huge loophole allowing potential charges down the road.

Now let's be fair for a second. I think there's a good chance that Sony won't charge for multiplayer online gaming at launch. I believe this for two reasons. The first is simply because it's unlikely they'll be able to get a robust online network together by launch, and hence would struggle to show a value proposition. The second falls out of the first - if you can't charge for the service anyway, why not spin it and make it free to try and challenge your primary competitor (Xbox Live) in the space? I doubt it'll work since in this case, I do believe that you get what you pay for, but I wanted to highlight the possibility.

To sum up the answer: undefined PC services which may have an equivalent service on the PS3 will be free, but Sony reserves the right to charge for content and other undefined specific services to be detailed in the future. Glad we got that cleared up.

Finally, there are some fun ones around Playstation 3 hardware specifications, an area that's changed dramatically over the last year. These are great examples of attempts to redirect the questioning... walk with me as we go through them in order.

First we have the general "what's changed" question...

Q19. Are there any additional or modified features from E3 last year ?
A19. Please refer to the specification sheet for details.

... which is redirected with a "look at the chart and see if you can remember enough from a year ago to see the differences... we're not telling ya."

Then there's the HDMI question. Basically, this is our interviewer asking "After all the fuss you made about having dual-HDMI ports and multiple-display games, where the heck did the second port go?" (Also note how the question itself tries to shift to a "can we play Blu-ray without HDMI" vein, and away from the original two port topic.)

Q20. You had previously announced that there would be two HDMI ports, but why does the PS3 with the 20GB HDD not have a HDMI port ? Can Blu-ray content be enjoyed in high quality graphics without HDMI ?
A20. High quality HD images can be enjoyed equally with the 20GB HDD product via the AV multi port (1080p output is also possible with the TV equipped with the D5 input). Analog output from BD will be supported until 2011 and all software published until they can be enjoyed. Standardization of visual image output via home network (e.g. DLNA) is also currently under way.

Answer: Look! What's that over there! <points at far off corner>

Tenacious interviewer isn't distracted and asks the same question again:

Q21. There were 2 HDMI ports in your original announcement, but why does the 60GB PS3 have only 1 HDMI port?
A21. Because standardization of image output over the network such as DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) is currently under way, it will become possible to transfer images to multiple displays in ways other than using the HDMI port. It is also possible to connect PSP through the network as a secondary display and enjoy PS3 content remotely (although it depends on the software).

Ah - finally some sort of answer. Yes, we admit we took removed the second HDMI port. But instead of admitting it's due to cost, the fact that no-one would ever have used it, and the additional aspect that the console simply can't render the quality of game people expect to two displays simultaneously, we'll redirect your thinking to future, vague technologies. <sigh>

I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea. Don't get me wrong - I'm still looking forward to the PS3 (and will put a pre-order down the day EB Games lets me). But I do get aggravated by this sort of careful wording and redirection. I might be more sensitive to it thanks to years of English degrees and other training, but it's my hope that by showing you some of this you'll also be better able to parse statements coming out of (any) company out there, including Microsoft and Nintendo.

[digg this article if you found it interesting!]