Play station 2 Now, the glitches

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MAR 21, 2000 PS2: Now, the glitches

Big things were expected of Sony's PlayStation2, launched early this month, but the much-touted game console has got off to a difficult start

By HAU BOON LAI IN TOKYO

WHEN Mr Kenichi Kobayashi got his hands on a Sony PlayStation2 earlier this month, he felt like he had struck black gold by being one of the one million people in Japan able to obtain a set of the much-touted game console.

Unlike some of his friends who had camped outside electronic goods haven Akihabara to greet the launch of the game console, the 24-year-old had ordered his through the Internet.

But his joy was shortlived -- his set was one of some 1,000 which a Sony Computer Entertainment Inc (SCEI) spokesman said were reported to have encountered a memory-disk glitch which rendered the DVD playing function on the set unworkable.

"I haven't been able to use the machine as I am still waiting for the chip replacement," said the temporary worker, who calls himself Speed2 when he logs on to websites dedicated to discussions of the latest video games and consoles.

The problem he encountered is just one of several that have surfaced since the launch of the sequel to the monster hit PlayStation1, which sold more than 70 million sets worldwide after its debut in 1995 and helped its creators, Sony, corner about 70 per cent of the video games market, estimated to be worth nearly US$15 billion (S$25.5 billion).

The PS2 is expected to further consolidate its share of the market with its enhanced graphics and superior effects for the video games.

By all accounts, the superior graphics have no equal -- the Emotion Engine and the Graphics Synthesiser combine to produce movie-quality, life-like games.

But the much trumpeted DVD playing function has since run into another, more serious problem. It has been discovered that PS2 can be adjusted to play DVDs from overseas as well.

While analysts said that the 1,000 memory card glitches which caused the machines to malfunction were expected in a shipment the size of the PS2, they were less sanguine about the latest problem as it involves a breach of an international pact allowing DVD machines to play only disks which come with disenabling codes.

"It's a copyright problem and this may be serious enough to warrant a recall," said an analyst during an interview over television.

In Japan, only discs with region code number two can be played. The code number for North America is one.

For Hollywood, the code difference is important in a major market like Japan, where movies are usually shown much later than in the US, sometimes as much as one year or more.

If there is a recall, consumers may not be easily persuaded to send in their machines for alterations as they would want to retain the ability to play the overseas DVDs. This could cause Sony to lose big money if movie makers decide to sue.

While DVD glitches are unlikely to dissuade gaming enthusiasts from buying the machine, there are a sizeable number of people who are buying it for this function.

"It's about the price of a normal DVD player," said new convert Sayuki Yamagata, an office worker in her 20s who said she would invest in a PS2 because of its many functions.

But it is not just the DVD playing function which is causing grief for SCEI. Observers said that problems with the PS2 began as early as last year, when speculation was rife that it could be launched at about the same time as a rival machine.

The Sega Dreamcast, another 128-bit game console, was launched in April last year. By the time SCEI announced the PS2 launch date, Sega had sold about two million sets. Another two million sets have been sold since then.

SCEI had been working almost non-stop to meet its deadline earlier this month. Industry sources had been quoted as saying that the chips were expensive to make and that at 39,800 yen (S$637) per set, the makers were probably making a loss on every machine sold at the moment.

Sony share prices had been climbing to stratospheric levels on the back of expectations that PS2 would be a monster hit like its predecessor. But the recent problems it has faced have caused its share price to go down by a few percentage points.

Sales-related hitches have also cropped up with the uncertainties surrounding the date when the next batch of machines will be shipped.

Shops have stopped taking orders for the machines since early this month. Even new video games have flown off the shelves and gone out of stock.

Last month, a website set up to take pre-delivery orders suffered a system crash when more than 100,000 people swarmed the site. Although the problem was fixed in a short time, many questioned the seeming unpreparedness of the organisers.

This was followed by revelations that the details of about 200 buyers over the website were revealed to strangers who had typed in random order numbers on the site and saw the order details bar the credit card numbers.

Sony has said it plans to ship another 1.4 million sets by the end of this month and half a million sets monthly after that. Industry sources have spoken reverently about a possible sales target of 20 million in Japan over the next few years and a total of 100 million worldwide after its debut in North America and Europe in the later half of the year.

The authorities have slapped a ban on the export of the PS2, citing the memory chip technology it holds. Anyone who wishes to take the machine out of Japan has to apply for an export permit which is subject to the approval of the Trade Ministry.

But over the Internet, sets are being offered for sale -- at double or triple the original price -- in places like the US and Hongkong.

The demand is still there. In Japan, storekeepers have been turning away dissatisfied customers who cannot get an answer on when the machines will be available.

Some have questioned if 100 million is still a possible figure to reach in view of the problems which have occurred. Those who have no particular brand loyalty may just end up buying that readily-available Sega Dreamcast console, which already comes with a modem and allows users to surf the Internet with it.

PS2 will be Internet capable but only next year, when it is expected to give out free software which will enable users to get a broadband connection -- a system which means faster and better graphics and sound.

But game enthusiast Kobayashi swears by the PS2.

"It's really good so I don't mind waiting," he said.

All Sony needs is another 99 million buyers who think like him.

http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/asia/ea14_0321.html

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), March 21, 2000


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