Sony has plans to soon provide a video-on-demand service for PlayStation 3 users in Japan in the first quarter of 2008, according to several published reports in Asia this week. The service, if successful, could prove highly beneficial to the Blu-ray Disc format, since some of the available content is expected to include Blu-ray titles. All PS3 consoles are sold with internal Blu-ray drives.
The new service would allow PS3 video gamers with online broadband access to be able to download games, movies and TV documentary content directly onto their PS3 hard drives (with the documentary titles along the same thematic lines as some of Sony’s more popular games, such as auto racing). Each download is expected to usually cost about $2 or less.
Sony will augment its online VOD service with still photos and other image content that would promote and complement its major game titles.
