PS3 Playstation Network to get premium subscription version?
PSN, the Playstation 3’s free online gaming and download platform, is rumoured to be getting an optional paid-for version in the near future. Speaking to CVG, Playstation Europe boss Andrew House has suggested that the service may be launching as soon as next month’s E3 conference.
House said that Sony “was studying the possibility of introducing a subscription model, offering premium content and services, in addition to the current free services.”
“Kaz Hirai stated a few months ago that we were looking at a premium service to sit alongside the current free service and that objective has not changed. You’ll learn more about it very soon.” With E3 the world’s biggest gaming conference, and with it’s doors opening “very soon” too, it’s odds-on that any official announcement would come then.
So what does this mean for those who want to stick with the free version of the Playstation Network? Not a hell of a lot, apparently. “I can assure you that the current PSN as you know it will remain a free service,” House clarified. “It is something that our competitors don’t offer and something that shows our loyalty to the PlayStation Community.”
With the PS3’s free online capabilities a great feature over its rival the Xbox 360, here’s hoping the standard PSN doesn’t get watered down in the process of adding premium content.
