Sony Announces Plan To Publish PlayStation Games On Non-PS Consoles

Sony has announced plans to launch PlayStation games on “additional console platforms beyond PlayStation platforms as early as 2021.” The first announced series for the change is Sony’s long-running baseball sim series MLB The Show. Ars Technica reports: The gazillion-dollar question, of course, is which other console platforms we might expect the series to launch on. Neither Sony nor MLB had…

FBI Asked Sony For Data On User Who Used PlayStation Network To Sell Cocaine

According to Motherboard, the FBI applied for a search warrant in October compelling Sony to provide data on a PlayStation 4 user who was allegedly part of a cocaine distribution network. The application even asks for what games the alleged drug dealer played, and his progress in them. From the report: “The Provider is hereby ordered to disclose the above information…

The Rise and Fall of the PlayStation Supercomputers

“On the 25th anniversary of the original Sony PlayStation, The Verge shares the story of the PlayStation supercomputers,” writes Slashdot reader jimminy_cricket. From the report: Dozens of PlayStation 3s sit in a refrigerated shipping container on the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth’s campus, sucking up energy and investigating astrophysics. It’s a popular stop for tours trying to sell the school to prospective…

EverQuest and Pantheon Developer Brad McQuaid Has Died

Brad McQuaid, best known as a formative hand in the creation of EverQuest, has passed away at the age of 51. From a report: McQuaid’s death was reported by the official Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen Twitter account, which is the MMO he was working on until his death. A message was also left on the Pantheon MMO forums by user…

‘Royalty-Free’ Music Supplied By YouTube Results In Mass Video Demonetization

An anonymous reader quotes a report from TorrentFreak: A YouTuber who used a royalty-free track supplied by YouTube itself has had all of his videos copyright claimed by companies including SonyATV and Warner Chappell. According to the music outfits, Matt Lownes’ use the use of the track ‘Dreams’ by Joakim Karud means that they are now entitled to all of his…

You Can Now Buy Pretend Food for Your $2,900 Sony Robot Dog

Gizmodo reports that Sony “will happily sell you make-believe virtual meals” for their robotic Aibo dog to unlock tricks, one of several new features added since its re-launch in 2017: The new feature that will appeal to most owners, however, is Aibo Food, which allows the robot to be virtually fed using augmented reality through the Aibo smartphone app. Meals can…

Microsoft Adds Over 50 Games To xCloud Preview, Plans Launch For 2020

Microsoft has added more than 50 new games to the preview of its Project xCloud game streaming service, including Devil May Cry 5, Tekken 7 and Madden 2020. Engadget reports: In a blog post today, Microsoft said it’ll send out a new wave of xCloud preview invites to gamers in the US, UK and South Korea. Starting next year, it also…

Security Researchers Exploit Amazon Echo’s Chromium Bug, Win $60,000 Bounty

An anonymous reader quotes TechCrunch: Two security researchers have been crowned the top hackers in this year’s Pwn2Own hacking contest after developing and testing several high profile exploits, including an attack against an Amazon Echo. Amat Cama and Richard Zhu, who make up Team Fluoroacetate, scored $60,000 in bug bounties for their integer overflow exploit against the latest Amazon Echo Show…

Netflix May Crack Down On Password Sharing

Netflix has always been aware of password sharing and has never seemed to mind it, but that attitude may change as the company says it’s looking into “consumer-friendly ways” to address the issue. When Guggenheim Securities’ Miachael Morris asked about it, Netflix CFO Spencer Neumann said: “We continue to monitor it. “We’re looking at the situation and we’ll [look for] those…

Samsung Ends Mobile Phone Production In China

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Reuters: Samsung has ended mobile telephone production in China, it said on Wednesday, hurt by intensifying competition from domestic rivals in the world’s biggest smartphone market. The shutdown of Samsung’s last China phone factory comes after it cut production at the plant in the southern city of Huizhou in June and suspended another factory…