Well, when I bought my player....I was assuming the titles announced at CES would be out around the time of their announced dates.

Well, since the demos show it and some others, along with the booklets. It makes it look like they are ready to go and just waiting to be released.

Well, those of us who are invested obviously would like to know that the software is catching steam. At this point, I would have thought we would be seeing more and more titles released along with more and more announcements of titles. Thats not the case. They arent even showing it in the advertisements (Syriana prime example)!!!

Im not planning to sell it, but thats not the issue. The issue is that I have a player, but software is slow coming.

In my mind, this time period is prime time to made headway against BD. It does not add to my confidence that I made a good purchase in this format war.

HD-DVD has a hill to climb and to me, its just not taking advantage of Sony sitting there at the bottom.

Training Day and The Perfect Storm also have TrueHD. However, I believe that TrueHD is also downsampled to 16-bit resolution. I'm not sure what DTS-HD will do yet, as there have been no releases in that format.

Just because there are clips of a movie doesnt' mean its' "done" as is the case here. I thought you were a part of that thread over at AVS? Cjplay did the compression on BB. He just sent it back a few weeks ago.

As for the rest of your issues, it is what it is. I've bought into it and obviously I'm here for the long haul. Bitching and moaning about it isn't going to change anything. And IMHO, BD isn't putting up much of a fight right now anyway. Should they be gaining some ground right now? Absolutely. But they can't even stock the shelves fast enough for the product. Everyone is keeping mum about....well...everything, it seems. I'm going to take that as something positive. The only people flapping their lips in this format war is Sony and look where that got them. I'd rather Toshiba just keep quiet and do what they're doing.

Well, when they advertise the player with those demo discs, it is somewhat misleading to demo movies that you cant buy. When they were intially released, it wasnt a big deal since I assumed they were coming out soon.

I can understand the frustration of someone who went in to best buy and said, ok, ill take a player and I want Batman Begins, Harry Potter, The Matrix and Charlie and the Chocolate factory....Im sorry sir, but those arent released and their is no release date right now.

Yeah, I saw that thread....he said that it was being reviewed and the supposed date was July 11 (rumored)....which doesnt look to be the case.

An announcement would be nice....even if its late August for the release.

The studios need to shut up the rumors

This is all that I am saying.

If WB, Paramount and so on, know that something is going to be released soon. All they have to do is formally announce it.

If it gets delayed a week or so for some reason or another, I dont mind, but at least it gives us our bearings and allows us to preorder.

We are invested in this format and I feel like the ball is being dropped in regards to disc releases (at least somewhat). Its disconcerting.

Now, BD discs? Dont even get me started. They more than dropped the ball with their initial releases.

Can't argue with any of that...other than the demo DOES say "coming soon."

All we can do is sit and wait at this point. Hell, even *I* only have 3 titles and look at my big fat mouth all over these threads. There's no one who wants more HD stuff than i

I've bought 21 titles and I'm still clamoring for more. King Kong is #1 on my wish list. I just want more players be available so the list of owners can start to grow. When that happens, you'll probably see a rush of release dates popping up. But with shortages, the studios will put on the breaks a bit.

Ha. Bitches.

Sony takes out ¥80 billion loan as PS3 production ramps up
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=18082

Sony Corp. has taken out an 80 billion Yen (545 million Euro) three-year floating-rate bank loan - marking the first time the company has borrowed funds in ten years.

According to Bloomberg.com, more than 20 Japanese lenders will contribute to the loan, which will be used to "diversify funding sources."

The report suggests that Sony has "tapped the country's expanding syndicated loan market as it offered a cheaper source of cash at a time when investors in corporate debt are demanding higher yields before an expected rise in Japanese interest rates this year."

Sony spokesperson Shinichi Tobe told Bloomberg that the loan offers more flexibility than bonds, and that the company had ended up borrowing more funds than initially planned.

Fellow spokesperson Koji Kurata added that the funds will be used "for general purposes", according to Bloomberg. Sony intends to invest 460 billion Yen (3.13 billion Euro) in semi-conductor manufacturing and 100 billion Yen (68 million Euro) in an initiative to develop liquid-crystal displays with Samsung.

Sony is also facing costs associated with the manufacture of the PlayStation 3 and the launch of the new Blu-Ray disc format - both of which are due to roll out this year. Last year the company embarked on a three-year cost-cutting exercise that will see the loss of 10,000 jobs.

If I did that currency conversion correctly, that's about 692 million dollars. Holy crap man, that's a big ass loan.

Wow!

I guess the PS3 and BR better be a hit for them this Christmas.

For some reason, lyrics from The Doors keep floating through my head.

Here's some more food for thought:

Sega is the latest developer to express concerns about the pricing of the PS3. They feel that the price point won't be a factor this year, as early adopters will keep sales steady. They worry about the viability of the PS3 platform into 2007, and say that Sony needs to plan to drop prices quickly.

What this would mean is that PS3 would stall, or that Sony would need to cut deeper into the bone to keep the product moving. How could Sony justify to their hardware partners that they would make the difference between PS3 their BD players even greater?

Granted, this is Sega saying this, and we all know their track record. Still, the fact that such a huge developer would go on record like this is telling.

they are taking out a loan months before they embark on a course that includes subsidizing several million game systems at several hundred each- a game system that developers are complaining is difficult and expensive to program for and as a result may not see many titles for in the near term.
Also they may have to subsidize Bd movie software to get bd 50s into the market place.

interesting strategy.

Well no matter how much we think a bit of their ideas for the PS3 are bad... you can't say this...

...You can't say that it won't sell incredibly well based on Playstation/Sony fandom alone.

Analysts are predicting this:

1. One large group of analysts are predicting the PS3 may even be third in the console wars. Why? Well, one thing is the $600 price tag. $600 is a lot to pay for consoles, period. I mean look at the history of consoles. Usually systems were at the same price, comparable. All you had to decide upon was the brand name and the games available on each console. Now there are literally three pricing tiers for this next generation war:

High - Playstation 3
Medium - Xbox 360
Low - Nintendo Wii (can't stress how awful of a name that is anyhow)

The Playstation 3 is the 'obvious' choice as most of those who made the PS2 popular want to do the same with the PS3. But, it's very expensive. The Xbox 360 is comparable to the PS3 as far as game performance goes, is already well established, getting better co-operation from game companies than they did on the Xbox, and is as listed... at a medium price range. Nobody is forced into buying a next gen HD movie player. The Nintendo Wii is the cheapest solution of all, cheaper than even the $300 Xbox 360 package that nobody will want compared to the Premium anyways. The Gamecube has a decent following and with the 'pricing tier' being so different for all three consoles now, the Wii may be a much more appealing choice than the others for many people... especially with the lure they can buy the back catalogue of Nintendo titles.

BUT...

...If the Playstation 3 actually does outsell the rest of the competition even at the $600 price tag, it could very well change the way game consoles are marketed as far as what price to select for retail.

But analysts are fearing that the PS3 may actually be in third place. Of course they cover their asses by saying 'this is only one of many possible outcomes'. I don't think we should kid ourselves that it could be third but hey, it's entirely possible.

2. What Sega has said above. The PS3 no matter how much will sell very well for a while since so many people are obviously so willing to buy the system no matter what. But how will it fare over time?

It's going to be very interesting to see in the long term how the PS3 does.

I don't know if the PS3 is really destined to become a third place console. The Xbox360 has seen its sales slow down and their 10 million goal by the launch of the PS3 is in major jeopardy. I think what we will see though is the market fairly well split by the 3 consoles. MS and Nintendo will probably gain a nice percentage next generation and all at the cost of Sony. Sony really needs to sell 100 million PS3s over a 5-6 year period and that may not be possible with the much stronger competition this time out.

Yeah, because this time around, Xbox Live already has a hugely impressive reputation for itself. That's huge. And then, the games that's out for the 360 are a much more impressive array than for the regular Xbox... and the biggest games of the year aren't even out yet.

Hardware sales always slow this time of year. They will pick up near Christmas.

True, but Microsoft was planning on selling 10 million before the PS3 even launched. The 360 sales will have to pick up this summer for that to happen. Still waiting for June's numbers. May was a big dissapointment for Microsoft.

You know, ive had my 360 for a while. And i still own 0 games for it. There truely isnt much if you arent a die hard shooter/racer fan it seems. And to be 100% honest, if it wasnt for SF2/Gears Of War, i wouldnt have bought the damn thing. However, im still chummin along waiting for SF2. Also, since Midway showed MK working on XBL, im hoping MS is in talks with SNK and gets a huge library of Neo Geo arcade titles for XBLA. Imagine playing Nam 1975 over live! DAMN!! Not to mention co-op metal slug online! It would be absolutely amazing. And i know id spend a LOT of cash on it without even a 2nd thought.

So yah, i truely hope MS will exploit the XBL advantage bigtime with lots of classic fighters and other arcade games for online play. However, marketplace sucks badly. Crappy games available for the most part, and other then SF2/GOW, theres really nothing else comming out that has ANY intrest to me. Bomberman might be intresting tho, i will probably get that. MS needs to get more titles announced from more companys and STAT. Its going to soon be 1 year since the 360 dropped with honestly not much to show for it. I dont blame consumers for not running out to buy one, if it wasnt for SF2 (which has been insanely delayed), i wouldnt even own one myself. MS needs to get on the ball bigtime.

p.s. - I was playing some PS2 earlier today, fired up some Tekken 5, God Of War and then went back to enjoy some Final Fantasy 10. Its really hard to go back to the 360 after playing such top tier titles. Games like those will be the reason all of japan will still get a ps3 and so many of us US gamers.

The 360 sales are good in Europe and North America, they suck in Japan though. Thats what is dragging them down right now.

I agree though that in the fall, the sales should pick up.

Splinter Cell Double Agent, Gears of War, Dead Rising, Call of Duty 3 and Madden 2007 are just some of the titles that should help sales in Q3 and Q4.

Im really hoping Dead Rising is great...From the looks of it, it might be awesome. Dawn of the Dead concept with Grand Theft Auto type play. It might be a HUGE hit for the 360.

And still, Oblivion owns them all!!

I'm interested to see that. You have a recent link?

Hate to agree with Blitz but the lack of games is exactly what I think is holding back sales of the 360...I bought one a few weeks ago, and basically very underwhelmed with the games. Im lucky because I can get games for free, but if I had to pay for them, I wouldnt buy anything out right now new. Interesting though it is hard for them to make games for the 360, so it seems to me that it will be much harder for them to make games for the PS3, so that will be interesting issue to watch.

Yeah, I have a 360 and havent played anything new since Tomb Raider in April. I think Aug/Sept will start to pick up.

Definately, all consoles will live or die based on their games.

The price is a major factor too, but if the PS3 has a GTA3 type game emerge, then it wont matter as much. GTA3 single handedly boosted PS2 sales probably more than any other game.

Halo 3 could do the same for the 360, but it isnt going to be out until next year.

MS is banking on Gears of War for the fall...from what ive seen/heard, it looks awesome, but will it translate into sales? Who knows.

I don't know if it can all be believed, I haven't done this research myself, but the article does point out that the current Japanese rates make the loan a better option than a stock sale. (plus there's less dilution to current shareholdes) Companies raise money all the time, I'm not sure this news is really all that meaningful to the launches of BD or the PS3. The ~$700mil is not much compared to their >$5bil cash balance, although they used to maintain a couple billion more, maybe they want it closer to $6bil.

I might add that the ~$700mil is not much compared to their total financing proceeds over the last few years, either. $3bil in 2004 fiscal.

With regard to the delay in Batman Begins and Harry Potter, perhaps WB is delaying their popular titles for use in a "hard launch" of the format later this year. When Sony tries to launch their BD player, Toshiba and WB could start an advertising campaign featuring some popular discs and steal some of Sony's thunder.

Just guessing of course. For all I know Batman Begins could be released next week.

This idea has been tossed around....I just dont buy it.

Big titles such as those will drum up buzz now versus a couple months from now. They could still advertise their impressive library at Sony's launch.

Titles like Superman Returns and MI3 will be a bigger bat against BD's launch.

Its probably manufacturing issues that are causing delays (both with the players and discs), but I dont know that for sure.

I just dont think sitting on your big titles when you have a 6 month head start is smart.