Rumors Are True, PS3 Delay Official

A breaking story confirms the rumors streaking across the net that
Sony’s Playstation 3 would overshoot their Spring 2006 release. Gamer’s
had little doubt in their mind, but Sony seemed unfailing to their
release of the next-gen system. Until today that is.

Japanese newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun (NIKKEI.net) reported Sony’s
concession to delay the new box with the boomerang controls. According
to the article, Sony attributes its delay to the lack of finalization
of the copy protection technology behind the Blu-ray Discs and
postponed the release until November, specifically in Japan.

However, discussion here in the office puts the release out even
further. Other issues will likely plague the Sony and the PS3. Namely,
their long running legal battle with Immersion Corp over the rumble
feature built into the DualShock game pads. Initially, Sony lost their
case to Immersion and had to award a cool $82 million to the patent
owners. Sony tried to have the decision appealed but their key witness
had little credibility in the eyes of Judge Wilken because he had been
paid by Sony.

Oh, and did we mention that recent speculation
have the system’s base price upwards of $800? No other details have
been revealed, but a meeting tomorrow during the annual Sony
developer’s conference may reveal more. SCE President Ken Kutaragi is
expected to speak, officially announcing a price among other things.