PlayStation

EA Says Digital Will Offset New Console Investments for the First Time

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on May 8 at 2:45 pm PT

Despite having to sink $80 million into new console game development this year, EA’s CEO John Riccitiello is upbeat, saying that “we are absolutely a different company in a different spot.”

Xbox Users Clocking More Hours Gobbling Media Than Gaming Online

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on March 27 at 1:33 pm PT

Microsoft said today that for the first time, Xbox Live users are now consuming more movies, TV and music than using the service to play multiplayer games.

Smithsonian Brings Classic Arcade Games to Life (Video)

Ina Fried in Media on March 24 at 9:00 am PT

Festivities highlighted the opening of a videogame art exhibit at the Smithsonian.

U.S. Videogame Sales Sank Deeper in February

Lauren Goode in News on March 9 at 10:00 am PT

The videogame industry continues to see year-over-year declines, according to the latest NPD data.

Sony to Streamline Product Lines, Shift to Common Pricing in the U.S.

Ina Fried in News on March 6 at 4:33 pm PT

In TVs, for example, the company is shifting from 40 models last year to roughly half that number in 2012. The company has also cut more than 300 positions from its U.S. workforce.

Not Lulzing Anymore: Five Hackers Charged in U.S., U.K. and Ireland

Arik Hesseldahl in News on March 6 at 6:21 am PT

Five people on two continents are charged as being members of the LulzSec hacking troupe that caused so much mayhem last summer. They are alleged to have been turned in by one of their own.

News Byte

Sony PlayStation Vita Launches in U.S., Europe

Lauren Goode in News on February 22 at 5:53 am PT

Sony’s new handheld gaming product, the PlayStation Vita, goes on sale today in Europe and the U.S. Following its initial launch in Japan in December, the device was plagued by some reported bugs, including crashes and gameplay lags, but Sony quickly issued a software update to address the issues. As The Wall Street Journal’s Katie Boehret notes in her review of the Vita, the 3G and Wi-Fi capable Vita costs $299; the Wi-Fi-only version costs $249.

Voices

Sony Promotes Hirai to President

Daisuke Wakabayashi, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on February 1 at 2:30 am PT

Sony Corp. said Wednesday it tapped Kazuo Hirai, a veteran of its PlayStation videogame business, to be the company’s next president and chief executive officer, in a move expected to accelerate a network strategy to align its consumer electronics with content and services.