PSP News: Sony Prepping Digital Copies Of UMD Titles For PSP Go! - PSP News

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Sony Prepping Digital Copies Of UMD Titles For PSP Go!

Okay, so as most of you know by now, the new PSP Go! is for the "digital-oriented crowd" and won't support the UMD format. Now, although both the current PSP-3000 and the PSP Go! will be sold alongside one another, many are still just planning to upgrade...and what do they do with their impressive UMD collection?

Well, Gizmodo asked Sony's Director of Hardware Marketing John Koller this very question, he had an interesting reply. Apparently, this is something Sony has considered, and they're currently in the process of creating a "good will program" of sorts. Koller said:

"We're in the midst of putting together a good will program. We'll be unveiling that soon [because] we actually think there's a significant group that will be upgrading from the 1000...In the past, we've seen a 20-25% trade-up factor, and I assume that's going to be the case here. We've modeled that. So we're looking at a good-will program—a short term good-will program that would continue for years afterward."

It seems the user's experience will be similar to Portable Copy, which is when Blu-Ray movies get ripped to the PS3 and PSP, but Koller clarified that nobody would actually be "ripping" UMDs. Rather, Sony wants to use a PSN-based digital distribution model that will "encourage users to sign up for the service." Now, one big bonus is that this Portable Copy idea would be free to the consumer, and right now, Sony is examining the current PSP games that will work with this good will program. Clearly, not all will, but we assume the most popular will be on the list. So anyway, this is where we stand right now concerning the UMD-to-PSP Go! transition.

6/5/2009 Ben Dutka

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Comments (28 posts)

eLLeJuss
Friday, June 05, 2009 @ 10:40:29 PM
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I can see piracy prevailing with this program ;/

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unleash_jad
Friday, June 05, 2009 @ 10:53:02 PM
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yeahhh hahhahhha i think they will make .iso and .cso games work with this one

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Sol
Friday, June 05, 2009 @ 11:23:06 PM
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I don't know. I admit to downloadable UMD games for the Go is convenient, but I still prefer to collect disks and cases of my games. I'd stick with the 3000, just for that.

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fluffer nutter
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 1:12:20 AM

Well, why don't you keep buying the UMD versions and then get the downloadable files to add to the PSP Go?

One possible way that this could work, is if they have the consumer:
1. Insert UMD to PSP 1000,2000,3000, etc.
2. Connect online to the new service.
3. It scans your UMD and acknowledges what game it is then
4. Puts a file into your "ownership" queue so that you can
5. Connect via PSP Go and download the digital version of the game.

Now, I know many of you are thinking "I can just rent or borrow a game, then connect and get a free digital version" of all of these games but I'm sure the R&D people at Sony can think of a way to make this work where they aren't getting screwed. After all, this is why they get paid the big bucks to work on this stuff. ;)

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ArnoldK PSXE [Administrator]
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 1:18:05 AM

Damn, Fluffer, you frigin read my mind, even the whole renting exploit. Hahaha. It's precisely what I was thinking Sony should do.
Last edited by ArnoldK PSXE on 6/6/2009 1:19:02 AM

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Highlander
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 4:35:47 PM

That rental exploit would be an issue. Unless of course each UMD game get's a unique code (unique to each copy) that along with the user's PSN account and the PSP's ID create a unique stanmp when someone uses the UMD -> Download service. That way if someone rents a game there is no unique code to enter, and if you share your code, the combination of PSN ID and PSP ID will not be correct, allowing Sony to reject fraudulent attempts to use the service.

All future retail UMD games could come with a unique number printed inside the cover for this purpose.

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RustEDalex
Sunday, June 07, 2009 @ 6:19:44 AM

or sony should do what nutter said but have the owner update the psp each month or cuople of months to make sure we own the psp games and not rent
Last edited by RustEDalex on 6/7/2009 6:21:58 AM

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Superman915
Friday, June 05, 2009 @ 11:29:57 PM
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For $279? Naahh...

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Reccaman18
Sunday, June 07, 2009 @ 9:30:51 PM

$249.99.

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therabbitkinge
Friday, June 05, 2009 @ 11:38:16 PM
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Well I think its a good idea but unfortunately "good will" isn't always rewarded sony will be robbed although I know their next firmware upgrade will kill piracy issues (god willing)

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Gregory Freeman
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 12:25:12 AM
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if i understand correctly (doubt it) does this mean, you simply tell the playstation store wut games you had, and they give you it for download??? if that's the case then, yeah... i own every game... ;)

a way it could work with minimum piracy is by requiring the last four digits on the bar codes in order to activate the download...

IMO it was a stupid idea to make a new psp system without a UMD drive, maybe in the future, but in this day and age, digital download isn't ready to go mainstream as a primary (and only) source of software. not to mention a good majority of the world either has no internet, or very poor connections...

if this is the future of gaming in general, then I don't like it... im a person who loves tangible objects... i recently baught FF7 on psn,(i miss my hard copy) and i feel like i baught air (which i basically did).. when disks go the way of the dinosaurs, and downloads become the new mainstream, im quiting the gaming scene. i'l leave the invisible game libraries with my children...
Last edited by Gregory Freeman on 6/6/2009 12:26:52 AM

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hald
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 2:21:19 AM

IMO Digital download IS ready to go as the ONLY source..
- It takes me twenty minutes to download a file with a size of 400 mb. Lets say a UMD-game is about 1 gb - that will be 40 minutes! In these 40 minutes I can watch a blu-ray or take my dog for a walk or whatever.
I dont see that as a problem?
Last edited by hald on 6/6/2009 2:22:03 AM

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Jian2069
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 10:41:22 AM

it may be for you, but not for most. it wouldn't work for me.

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Gregory Freeman
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 1:04:15 PM

i agree, not everyone can adapt yet..

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jaybiv
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 1:51:19 PM

I don't see nothing wrong with Sony taking a chance with the Go! At worst, you can always download the game to the PS3 and transfer it. PSP games have been up for a while and I haven't seen too many complaints. The only way Sony could make the system smaller and lighter was to ixnay the UMD.

Sony is going to get hit hard with this honor system if you will. People aren't paying for music so they definitely will not pay for vdeio games if they can avoid it.

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GuernicaReborn
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 12:42:57 AM
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The way I see it, if you have any UMD games you would have to register them on PSN or something like that. Then, when you upgrade to the Go!, you can download the games you registered with your previous PSP.

I don't know how they would set the system up, but anyone who has UMD games must have a PSP to play them on. Just register games before you upgrade to PSP Go!.

If the PSP Go! is your first PSP, then you shouldn't have any UMD games that you would need to download.

The only thing I don't like about digital downloads is that finding deals for games online or in store is virtually impossible, since the only place you can get them is from the PSN.

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fluffer nutter
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 10:40:14 AM

I was thinking that exact thing about not being able to get deals on the digital versions of games. This is why I would still be looking for deals on the UMD-based games because I would save money, have the tangible version, and be able to download it onto my future PSP Go. It's a win-win for me because then I have both PSPs to choose from when I want to play my games. This all would depend on how they design the "good will" service that they are working on. I really hope it's something similar to what I suggested (and others obviously thought about too).

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b3mike
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 1:33:40 AM
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You know I bought a psp-1000 at launch for 250+tax, it just collects dust for the most part. I mean do you really have time to play a game when you're standing in line waiting to purchase a movie ticket? Does the psp go even have a video output? Sony should have just added a second analog stick and kept the price well below $200. I made the mistake of buying a psp at launch and will not do it again. Just my 2 cents

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Midris7
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 3:22:53 PM

They can't add a second anolog stick simply because the games for the PSP Go! and the other PSPs would be different. How would developers make a shooter for the PSP Go! different from the other PSPs, when the intention of Sony is to have all games work on both?

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lionfire
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 1:56:07 AM
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i will wait for a price drop on it, but most likely get one eventually.

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DKBaNaaH
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 4:05:13 AM
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the thing has just been announced and you guys are already talking about price drops. looks like you'll be waiting ages til you buy one then.

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Highlander
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 4:40:11 PM

Indeed, If I look at how much my original PSP and PS3 cost, and compare that against the number of games I've bought, the initial investment was high, but I've spent way more since on games and accessories. People (consumers) put too much importance on the initial price. It's just another pressure for Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft to deal with. Basically, people will always want things to be cheaper.

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therabbitkinge
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 8:02:56 AM
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At the rate its going (and it hasn't even released yet) I don't see thr psp go! Changing in design for a good long while and also the concept of the good will thing is confusing me, all im actually wondering is if I can use this puppy as a mini media player like most devices of its type. Anybody have any idea what its capable of besides gaming?

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fluffer nutter
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 10:44:37 AM

According to what Kaz stated, the PSP Go is designed for the digital lifestyle. You will be able to play mp3s but I don't know what other music file formats will be playable. The video section of the PS Store is now available on all PSPs so that means we should be able to have a decent assortment of video codecs to watch film, tv shows, etc. They redesigned the Media Manager program to make it easier to organize and transfer files from your PC to the PSP.

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jaybiv
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 1:56:35 PM

It will do everything the 3000 does, and aside from the new features in the 3000, it will do everything all PSPs can do. I appreciate how Sony keeps the core capabilities tied into all the systems. You have to forgive me, I have a 60g launch PS3.
Last edited by jaybiv on 6/6/2009 1:56:51 PM

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Highlander
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 4:37:54 PM
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Overall, I love the PSP Go! announcement, and this is another element to making it work. However from the point of view of a PSP-1000,2000 or 3000 owner, this is 100% terrific news. 8GB MemoryStick ProDuo cards are $40 or less now. So downloadable games are very much a positive thing for all of us. Better still the battery life of our old model PSPs should be better running games off MemoryStick than UMD so we win with the PSP Go! whether we buy one or not.

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THEVERDIN
Saturday, June 06, 2009 @ 6:17:08 PM
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I'm also confused. Does this mean I have shell out some money for something I already have? F#$% That.

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bamf
Sunday, June 07, 2009 @ 10:58:18 AM
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Sony's downloading them all off BitComet then putting them all on the PSNstore, lol.

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