back to article PlayStation Network downloads limited to two devices

Sony announced today that future games purchased on the PlayStation Network will only be granted activation on two devices at any one time - down from the current number of five. While that applies to all PS3 owners and anyone with a PSP of some kind, have no fear, there is an easy workaround. The company is introducing an …

COMMENTS

This topic is closed for new posts.
  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Still pretty generous

    As Xbox content is per console, and even per-account. So you need multiple Xbox Live Gold accounts on a single console to play 1 title on 1 console for multiple users.

    1. Marco Alfarrobinha
      FAIL

      Do you even know what you are talking about?

      When you download a Xbox Live Arcade or DLC, any account on that console can use that content. Buy or loan an xbox before you comment about something that you don't know.

  2. Filippo Silver badge

    deactivation of dead devices

    I can deal with this, if they give me an automated way to deactivate dead consoles, including ones whose S/N I might have lost.

    1. Nigel 11

      Lost s/n

      Yup. What's the bet that to de-activate you'll have to provide a serial number that you forgot to write down prior to throwing the dead box away, or which became forever inaccessible the moment it failed?

  3. Pseu Donyme

    WOT?

    Is it just me or does this seem kinda reasonable? Pay for it and get to play it on two consoles at any one time (as opposed to, say, OEM Windows which is supposedly to be used with only the one PC it came with).

    1. tmTM

      Not really

      With the failure rate of their consoles if they didn't let you use the game on more than one people would be pretty hacked-off. They'd certainly spend less if they'd lost a console and with it all their bought content.

  4. Annihilator

    Two is all you really need

    It enables you to transfer it between two machines and deactivating the old one afterwards.

    Presumably the only reason it needed to be 5 previously was because there was no way to deactivate a product/system?

  5. MJI Silver badge
    Unhappy

    Nasty

    If you have more than 2 PS3s

  6. MJI Silver badge

    I was looking at resurrecting a YLOD

    Got an old 40GB which has had 2 YLODs, managed to get the data off, but want to do a leaded reball on the RSX.

    .

    Will it be worth doing it soon?

  7. leon stok
    Headmaster

    deactivation of 'dead' devices via the web will come as well

    from the Playstation blog:

    'Sony Computer Entertainment plans to provide a new PlayStation Network account management website where users will be able to deactivate particular devices attached to their PlayStation Network account via their PC.'

    which is nice, since before there was no way to remove broken devices, or systems you can't get to.

  8. jai

    hello?

    I seem to have stumbled on the wrong website my mistake. I was expecting plenty of angry rants here on the iron fisted fist of Sony being unreasonable... or are we just all overly happy because it's a friday?

  9. EzJ
    Thumb Up

    Not so bad...

    I actually think this is quite reasonable. I have only just started taking advantage of this function and to be honest I was amazed I was able to do it at all.

  10. Vince

    Grr! This is the sort of backward thinking that should be banned

    This is the sort of stuff generally that annoys me more generally and not in this particular case (mostly cause I have no Playstations etc)

    But I do have for example a lot of android devices, and they're all mine. They're all signed in with the same google account - and I do use them all. So why exactly does the actual device being used have anything to do with it?

    Find a way to track simultaneous use or something sure, that I can understand, but really? Limit the number of devices, that sounds like a low-tech, nasty cop out - as time goes by it is certain we'll have more devices on average - that's how things are developing.

  11. Daniel B.

    Nice!

    While it is pretty bad that we'll lose the 5 PS3 activations, the ability to remotely deactivate PS3s compensates for that. I'm on my third PS3 (first one had defective BD drive, second never got past 3.15 because of the OtherOS issue) so I'd be screwed if they didn't add the deactivation feature!

  12. Greg J Preece

    While it's not going to inconvenience most people, I honestly don't get the point. Steam will let you log in to your account from a range of devices, operating systems and versions, and get your games on all of them. You can only actually *use* any one given device at once, but that's the same as PSN.

    Where I can see this potentially causing a problem is in anything that runs on both PS3 and PSP. I've already got one of each, and before long I'll have a Vita too, so Playstation Classics might be an arse...

    1. EzJ

      @Greg J Preece

      I'm not sure what you meant by *use* but I have logged onto my friends PS3 and downloaded all my psn games. He can now play them whenever he wants to even though he is logged in as himself. I can still play the same games at the same time at home. In other words we currently share what we buy.

      I suspect you meant that you are not meant to do this but you certainly can do it.

  13. HamsterNet
    Flame

    Sony to Customers

    F YOU ALL ....

    again (rotkits)

    and

    again (no Other OS support)

    and

    again (data losses)

    Don't even bother with lube these days as the Sony customer is so loose.

  14. SpaMster
    Thumb Up

    Being able to deactivate consoles yourself without ringing up Sony is a step in the right direction. Me and my friends used to chip in for the COD map packs so we were basically getting them for half price, as long as we can still continue to do this i'll be happy.

  15. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I preferred 5

    I have have two PS3s, one in the living room and one for the bedroom.

    Is Sony saying I should not buy any more PS3s? I use them for games and movies so if I moved house I very well might want one for another room. I don't like this.

  16. nemo20000
    Meh

    To be honest

    I always thought the five device limit extraordinarily generous and out of all reasonable necessity. This is far more sensible.

  17. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    So if you have 3 kids going online at the same time you are screwed....

    Looks like nobody has more then 2 kids using playstations at the same time, so you are all OK with the limit of TWO.....

  18. JeffyPooh
    Pint

    Two PS3s

    We have two PS3s; so I guess we won't buy another.

    We have three PSPs, but it's not an issue. They're rendered completely obsolete by the two iPhones and two iPod Touches.

  19. King Jack
    Facepalm

    Once again Sony

    Another feature culled by Sony. Wait for the hacks and cracking of content to grow as a direct result. Some companies never learn. Sony the kings of clawing back features. I wonder what's next to be removed?

    What surprises me is idiots applaud being shafted. Sheep with mad cow disease?

  20. Kazriko Redclaw
    Devil

    Some good reasons to have multiple systems.

    Some have questioned the idea of multiple systems... I have a very good reason to have 3 PSP compatible systems, and less good reasons 3 for PS3 ones.

    On the PSP front, I have a PSP3000, a PSP Go, and will be buying a PSVita. They all excel in different areas. The Go works great on the TV, can have an external controller, and is very small. I take it with my on normal day to day activities when I might have a minute or three to play. The PSVita has better battery life than the Go and a larger screen, so when I know I'll be playing some games, I'll probably take it with me. The PSP3000 can have tremendous battery life, up to 18 hours with 2 battery packs. I take it with me on very long plane trips or road trips... Now I'll have to make the hard choice of exactly where I'm going to be playing each game, or I can just decide that I'm going to take my DSiXL on long trips and leave the PSP at home instead.

    If Sony could make one system that had all of the features, instead of releasing 3 separate partially crippled systems, it would make their choice a little saner.

    On the PS3 front, my wife and I both have PS3's in our bedrooms hooked up to computer monitors, and we have a 3rd one on the main TV in the living room. It's a pain to move them around after all. I'll probably sell the noisy one and make the quiet one mobile here once they put this into effect.

    1. Marco Alfarrobinha
      WTF?

      @ Kazriko Redclaw

      "On the PS3 front, my wife and I both have PS3's in our bedrooms"...

      Not only you have different bedrooms, you play PS3 separatelly... Dude, you and your missus need some serious counselling.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        @Marco

        What's wrong with that, me and my missis watch telly in different rooms, we each have big tv's and both have a humax freesat box.

        She has a new xbox 360 and a separate dvd player.

        I have nothing, oh, I recently connected my PC to the tv, but I only use it for internet occasionally.

        We watch totally different tv.

        Can't imagine how we used to watch the same telly years ago.

This topic is closed for new posts.

Other stories you might like