The PSP As Marketing Tool

If you're looking for more to do with your PSP, Kotaku has a few suggestions for you. Music Videos, Advermovies, and AtomFilms are all being formatted for Sony's new handheld. From the article: "...AtomFilms is making some of their free movies available for PSP download. Interestingly, Sony actually paid AtomFilms to make this happen. In return, AtomFilms is reporting download stats back to Sony."

Comments

I like it

[mrbaggs]

Personally I think this might turn out to be a good thing on both counts. Atom Films has some really funny stuff on thier site and if Sony sees high DL #s we might see similar video downloads in the future.

Ag! This is so frustrating...

[ajservo]

If it weren't for this stupid DMCA, I'd offer a business to rip DVD's for people to use on their
PSP.

Like the ipodloaders do.

It's not a glorified job, but it'd be steady income. But, it's not legal. Thanks MPAA!

Nice idea

[zaktheduck]

It'll only take off properly though once Sony get their act together and finally release a proper PSP web browser. Having to use the WipeOut Pure browser hack every time will get annoying.

Re:Nice idea

[UWC]

Yeah, the Wipeout Pure hack or, oh, I don't know, a USB cable and a computer? Put the PSP in USB Mode, and it automatically mounts as a removable drive in operating systems that support USB drives (Windows 2000/XP, OS X, and I assume recent Linux versions).

A firmware upgrade with the ability to connect to download sites would be nice, though. Could even use a PSP-specific XML file on participating sites.

Re:Nice idea

[CronoCloud]

You can even mount your PSP on a PS2 with the Linux kit installed (and the xRhino kernel)

Link to TFA, not another summary!

[Kaimelar]

How about having the summary link to the article with content, instead of another summary:

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=&ie=UTF-8&q= psp+marketing+promotion+vehicle&btnG=Search+News

Going to the link through Google News gets by the NYT registration.

I'm about to break

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, i'm flat out disgusted.

The PSP itself was advertised all to hell. I still can't go anywhere without seeing it on a billboard at least 10 times a day. It's Sony's tactic, i've decided. Shove the PSP in your face so much that you think you just gotta have it, theres no alternative, and its the chicest tech available

And now, now, they use the MACHINE ITSELF as a marketing tool? Give it a friggin rest, Sony. You're really driving me crazy.

As if the shoddy hardware wasn't bad enough. Christ.

Re:I'm about to break

[Mr.Dippy]

although your rant has a point, doesn't every company do this. Isn't this the point of capitalism. First rule of selling anything: create a need to own.

Re:I'm about to break

[Anonymous Coward]

No. Thats the reason some products fail outright-- Horrible mareting strategy, sometimes none at all.

And even if MOST companies do, few companies do it as much as Sony. Even Apple barely holds a candle (iPod) to Sony, not that they need to.

Re:I'm about to break

[generic-man]

I don't understand what you mean. You own a PC that can play movies, right? A while back, BMW commissioned a few short films for distribution over the Internet. They did so as a marketing method.

PSP owners don't have to download this content; it is just made available for people who want something free to download.

This is the digital equivalent of giving away free t-shirts, caps, etc. Feel free to mock people who download all this junk, but why go after the provider here?

Re:I'm about to break

[tratch]

That guy's right, you guys.

Re:I'm about to break

[Wyrmw00d]

I tried to market your mom but I couldn't give her away for free even with a PSP stuffed in her thong.

Re:I'm about to break

[MMaestro]

Thats not a very good analogy. What parent is trying to say is that using the product you're trying to sell in order to FURTHER your sales in the same product is insulting and annoying to consumers.

BMW doesn't sell cars and then make YOU download advertisement to watch on YOUR built-in mini-TV screen inside your BMW car, only to have it say "Go to your local BMW car dealer and buy more BMW products!"

True you don't HAVE to download and watch this stuff, but then why did you buy a PSP? Or rather, why did you buy such a big memory stick if you knew it was largely going to be unused until something like this came along?

Re:I'm about to break

[Anonymous Coward]

So why did you buy a PC with a 200 GB HDD?

Read back through the recent slashdot games archives on the PSP. There are a lot of other things it (and its memory sticks) can be used for. Surprisingly, you can also use it for playing games. Indeed, you can use it for playing a larger selection of generally better games than its main competitor, the Nintendo DS. I seriously doubt many people are walking into shops to buy their PSP because they want to watch adverts on it.

Of course, if they *want* to watch an advert on it then fine... it's their call.

Of course, expecting a reasonable or logical argument from the Sony-hating slash-horde is a bit like expecting blood from a stone, but never mind.

Re:I'm about to break

[Anonymous Coward]

I'll call your bluff. Larger selection? I think not. DS games outnumber PSP games. Generally better games? Only if you consider more of the same "better". I certainly don't.

How about you stop presenting your PSP love as fact?

Re:I'm about to break

[Anonymous Coward]

I guess I could always go and play those superb, original, innovative games on the DS, like "Tiger Woods Golf", "Madden" and "Mario 64".

Or else I could stick with Lumines, Mercury, Metal Gear Acid and Wipeout Pure. Hmm... tough choice.

Not only for PSP

[Anonymous Coward]

It's formatted to fit on the PSP's screen, but the files are just normal MP4 files. You can play them on your PC with video players like VLC.

Not particularly relevant to the AtomFilms material, which is already available to download, but some of the music videos mentioned in the article are only otherwise available in streaming format - these PSP downloads are a good way to save them to your PC.

Re:Not only for PSP

[wheresdrew]

Actually, they're not even formatted for the PSP's screen. They're just mp4 files that the PSP will play without any further tweaking or file renaming.

If they're going to go to the trouble of making downloads targeted at PSP users, would it be too much to ask for the videos to fit the aspect ratio of its screen?

Sony Memory Sticks

[Shazow]

If anything, this will influence people to buy more of them expensive proprietary memory sticks...

If there was only some sort of UMD burner that one could buy... :P

- shazow

I thought it already was...

[Anonymous Coward]

I thought it already was... Namely for Sony's UMD and Memory Stick formats.

Aw man....

[mpaon]

Am i the only one who first read that as "Music Videos, Adultmovies, and AtomFilms"?

Re:Ag! This is so frustrating...

[Anonymous Coward]

What do you charge for your service? ;) Many people make steady income illegally while remaining under the radar of enforcers.

And whats this?

[Lord_Dweomer]

And what is this article then, a press release in order to get people to submit work to do free advertising for Sony? No thanks. They can give me a paycheck if they want my work, and they'll have to wait in line behind all of my other clients.