First of all, I figured that I should put on my activist hat and also elaborate more on the PS3 comment from the last blog. As you may already know, Sony recently disabled the “Other OS” option on the “fat” PS3s with the release of their 3.21 system software update. If you don’t know, I’d suggest you stop here and Google the 3.21 system software update before continuing, just so you have some basic background on things, and also have had a chance to read people’s responses, seeing as I have my own opinions, based upon the responses I’ve read. That said though, I will be using some links as well though not necessarily ones that’ll provide background.
For those of you that already know, or have gotten yourselves up to speed on things just now, not many people actually use the Other OS option. I mayself don’t use it but I was considering it at some point, though now I haven;t the option to. Sony’s excuse was apparantly “security concerns”, but essentially that’s like putting a small fire out with a few million gallons of water, when a bucket would have sufficed. Of course, as a result of the Other OS removal, a lot of people are annoyed though some couldn’t care less. Of course, this is only scratching the surface of things; first of all, the removal of this option now means that Sony has broken an EU Law; Directive 1999/44/EC to be precise. As you can see here, someone already attempted to claim a refund from Amazon UK and was successful in doing so. This sets an interesting precident and certainly one I’m going to both explore and follow through; this blog entry is the second step in that process. I’ll explain the first step shortly but here’s a bunch of links in relation to the EU law and the PS3 3.21 software:
http://www.yellowdog-board.com/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=7266&sid=dff956c5372ab577ba5d29f2fd2b7ace&start=180#p37999
http://lists.fixstars.com/pipermail/yellowdog-announce/2010-April/000223.html (Yellow Dog Linux announcement)
http://labby.co.uk/2010/04/playstation-3-ps3-firmware-update-3-21/ (a fellow UK blogger’s post on the update; seems an argument with his wife was caused, oh dear)
http://community.eu.playstation.com/t5/PlayStation-3-General-Discussion/PS3-Firmware-3-21-coming-April-1st-no-joke/m-p/10495082
http://www.thinq.co.uk/news/2010/4/9/sony-says-sorry-for-other-os-take-down/ (Sony apoligise, but it’s a bit too late for that now)
My first step was to actually join these 3 communities on FB protesting the removal of the feature. I’m not sure which one is better, so I joined all 3:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=114315258581392 (this is coincidentally where I got my YDL info from)
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=108458319185510 (this one I have contributed to and I think it was considered the “best” one, based on a post I read)
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=107165099316102
With all that out of the way, I’ll continue. I foolishly installed the 3.21 update as I thought it was a joke and also I’ve been waiting for an update since December so I had hoped it stabilised the system as well. Alas, it wasn’t a joke. Going back to the issues Sony now face besides potential lawsuits and being looked at by the consumer protection bodies, they also failed to factor in what the removal of the Other OS option could actually do, such as remove its tax classification as it’s no longer a computer. They just shot themselves in the foot at least twice! another issue as well is that if you do want to keep Linux on your PS3, you have the choice not to update. Of course, you’ll be denied access to the PSN and also be unable to watch BDs or play games that need the 3.21 patch, so people are getting shafted with 2 clear options:
Keep 3.15: Keep Linux, but lose PSN access and ability to play latest movies/games and also not get any important system updates.
Update to 3.21: Lose Linux, but be able to play latest movies/games and access PSN and get important updates.
Clearly, the choosing of one or the other is unfair, especially when you consider that it’ll put people off buying PS3 games, so between lost console sales, lost games sales, refunds (provided enough do it, the retailers will claim the money back off Sony) and having to pay taxes, Sony have caused themselves to enter a world of hurt, both financially and with their fans. I noticed that a lot of people blame this GeoHot guy for hacking the PS3, but the amount of effort required to even hack the system is more than what most people are willing to do; it’s really only the dedicated ones who would go this far anyway. There’s a lot of debate on the issue, especially the reasons for it, but I don’t want to debate them right now. I’d recommend reading up on that bit yourself, especially as I’m in the process of doing it as well. Either way, I’m off to game so I can look at getting a partial refund for my lack of Other OS option. It’s my ultimate hope that enough people claim a partial refund in order for Sony to realise the mistake they’ve made and restore the access; sorry in this case doesn’t cut it.
NB: There is an option to have the 3.21 patch and the Other OS option, but that’s playing with fire as you risk getting banned off PSN for it. It’s been recommended you don’t do it. Additionally, you can’t downgrade back to 3.15 once you’ve upgraded as Sony have removed that version!
Update 20/4/10: I’m now aware of the fact that WP doesnt seem to automatically process hyperlinks, doh! I’m fixing that now though. I’m going to find a plugin that processing them for me, though ideas are welcome. I also looked into getting a partial refund from Game, in the store where I purchased my PS3, although the manager there says I’ve to contact Sony about that. I haven’t pursued this as of yet, due to recovering from surgery but I’ll certainly be seeing what I can do soon.
Update 21/4/10: Embarressingly, I didn’t notice there were a few comments attached to this post. Of course, in my defense, I was recovering from surgery (the post was made a day before I went in) and was out of it plus didn’t really come back here till yesterday. The comments are now cleared and should be able to be seen and I’ll be looking back to see if there’s any other comments I missed.
Tags: Activism, Games Industry, PS3, Sony
Hiya Stormkeeper
The manager at Game that told you you need to deal with Sony is wrong – the purchase was made through Game not through Sony.
Game are liable for the changes, not Sony.
The process would be:
You deal with Game as they are the retailer
Game deals with Sony which has nothing to do with you.
Read the EU directive again, this is clearly stated. I would suggest printing out the said directive and taking it to the store.
You are completely within your legal rights – if Amazon which is a multinational Company realises that they are liable and would lose far more in court costs should they try to challenge the case then Game don’t have a legal leg to stand on.
Best regards
Greg.
And now back to me complaining about Vodafone Nexus One :p
Thanks for the info on the mess Sony have put themselves in. I considered buying a PS3 out because of the “Other OS” option (I like tinkering!), but won’t bother now. Instead, I’ll put together a moderately priced PC.
You’re quite welcome
I was eventually going to consider putting Linux on my PS3, but now I don’t have the option to. Of course, if I didn’t already have a PS3 and was considering purchasing one, I’d most certainly be put off buying one now!
Of course, if anyone wants to purchase a ‘phat’ PS3 with the ability to install the “Other OS” option, they could consider getting one second hand, as from what I gather, the retailer pockets all of the proceeds of that transaction.
I certainly wouldn’t purchase a new one to line Sony’s pockets; they don’t deserve my money! I’m very close to being put off from buying other Sony/PS3 products in the future and might have to consider this if the Other OS option isn’t restored…
I did consider a second hand one, but I’ve been burned by second hand stuff in the past. The PS3 is a delicate enough piece of kit as it is without risking purchasing one, having it die on my weeks down the line, and have no warranty or recourse.
As far as I know, Game/Gamestation offer a 6 month guarantee with their second hand goods. I got my PS3 new and as part of a deal. PS3s are pretty solid macines though, when you compare them to the 360s of the time.
Of course, the Wii is the most solid in terms of consistant reliability.
Hello,
I myself luckily have not even updated to 3.15! Hopefully I can get this custom firmware thing!! woo yeah if its anything like the psp one it will be awesome.
I’d be careful about getting the custom firmware (CFW) if I were you as it seems that people are being locked out of PSN for having it. They’ve blocked out the proxy alternative I’ve been reading about so there’s very little that can be done to retain the Other OS option, except for simply not upgrading.
While as far as I’m aware there’s no violation stateside, I’m interested in following this as it develops. I’m not so much the type to embrace the Other OS option as some of my mates, but it felt like an important utility that could’ve been safeguarded properly instead of removed altogether.
Frankly, I’d be happy if they hadn’t produced the last few generations of PS3 without backwards compatibility, although PS2 is dropping in price fast enough that they’ll probably start handing them out at gas stations for filling up.
I should be making a new post over the next day or two because I have some new info I want to add and follow up on and it’s been a week since the last post so I need to make a fresh update on it now, with some new links, though there won’t be as many this time round.
As for any law violations and the countries concerned, I’ll explain them in the updated post too.