150°

Virgin Media is Sony's PlayStation 4 UK ISP partner

Virgin Media is Sony's PlayStation 4 UK ISP partner.

During its Gamescom 2013 press conference Sony announced it had struck a number of deals with ISPs across Europe for broadband and PlayStation 4 packages, saying it was aware high speed internet - essential to the PS4's success - isn't always guaranteed across Europe.

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eurogamer.net
iamnsuperman3933d ago

This is quite good for Virgin and Sony. Considering we get out TV and Internet from the same people (due to deals and what not) this could be a valuable partnership. It just depends on what the deal is

fsfsxii3933d ago

Are they also the ISP partner for the Vita in the UK?

minimur123933d ago

No, I think that is Vodafone

Gazondaily3933d ago

Virgin Media are TERRIBLE. Anyone who has the misfortune of being with them will know about their shambolic customer service and pitiful broadband services.

Sony should have partnered up with SKY or BT. They are actually decent.

SirBradders3933d ago

@Septic
I must but really fortunate with aol then because i get 1.2mb a second download rates with 2 of my sisters consoles running 5 phones connected to the router as well as a tablet or 2.

What im trying to say is it doesn't matter who your with it matters on your cabling, area usage and a small portion of what the isp allow. Imagine what i would get with virgins fibre optic then.

iamnsuperman3933d ago (Edited 3933d ago )

@Septic that might be to do with regions though. I have had Virgin for three years while I was at university and not only was the price decent but so was the service (talking about a high density area with houses having roughly 5-8 people living under one roof. At peak times the internet was still good). I know Virgin are excellent in most UK cities. I don't think they are that good in rural areas (I may be mistaken on this though). My home is fine as well but I think that is down to living in a low population density part of Leicester than Virgin's doing

Sky isn't that good (except for their TV side) and I am unfamiliar with BT.

RedSoakedSponge3933d ago

@Septic

im with virgin and have an alright time with their service. the only issue i have (and its a pretty big one imo) is for some reason in my area, after about 6pm, youtube just doesnt wanna buffer....

...i heard its something to do with virgin having a proxy on youtube or something?

been looking for an answer to this for a LONG LONG time since virgin out right deny it.

hennessey863933d ago

@septic, I'm with virgin, got the 100 meg package and get an average of 13 mb per second download speed. I have never had a problem with them.

FriedGoat3933d ago (Edited 3933d ago )

@Septic SKY? This shows me you have absolutely no clue on ISPs. And you talk about customer service, sky have the worst.

SKY and BT are the AOL of the modern age. I'm currently with BT (80 mb Fibre) because that's the best I can do at the moment, but as soon as another Be Broadband shows up, I'm switching like lightning.

Unfortunately Be Broadband were the last of a dying breed, amazing connections (for ADSL), fantastic customer service and technical knowledge. They knew their users were advanced and didn't have to hold hands. Unfortunately they fell behind the fibre bandwagon and then sky comes along and buys them out, hilariously everyone terminates their service.

http://blog.bethere.co.uk/2...

These are some of the funniest comments, and show peoples true experiences with sky, one of the worst ISPs.

"Having been unfortunate enough to be with Sky previously, I switched to BE for several reasons, and they've never let me down, whereas Sky did so, consistently. Primarily, BE's support service is second to none, and should you get that merged into Sky's, then frankly, we're all doomed."

"Reading this has annoyed me greatly. As an ex-employee of Sky I wouldn't touch their broadband with a bargepole and it looks like now I will be having to leave and find a new ISP."

Classic.

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 3933d ago
vigilante_man3933d ago

This is amazing news for customers like me. It means they will offer a 200 Mbps service with PS4/Vita offers thrown in.

And they will reserve part of the 200 Mbps just for gaming. At the moment I gotta share my 100 Mbps with Tablets, smartphones, PC, Laptops and 360, PS3 and Vita.

I pay for the service I want dedicated bandwidth just for me!

manchesterman223933d ago

thank god i dont have to be involved in this partnership, virgin media are the worst isp i have ever had the misfortune to use

KwietStorm_BLM3933d ago

What do you mean thank god you don't have to be involved?

3933d ago
paul-p19883933d ago

Virgin are one of the better ones, BT were bloody useless!! So glad i swapped to EE, got a mobile customer discount as well and now relatively cheap fibre optic.

If Virgin were in my area then i would change them in a heartbeat, but they're not, so i have to wait lol

sprinterboy3933d ago

I get 100Mb of the 120mb from virgin and I have been with them for 15 yrs, virgin is great, good luck with bt and sky lol

hennessey863933d ago

I think they are brilliant, I can download a film or game in no time.

Gazondaily3933d ago

@manchester

LOL! Mate I just made a post above and I didn't read yours until now. You've basically said the same thing I did.

I remember my mates dealing with them at uni...omg...just useless.

FriedGoat3933d ago

You must have only used two ISPs then.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 3933d ago
SniperControl3933d ago

I have been using VM for a along time (since they were NTL), very rarely do I suffer from any outages or slow downs. In fact only a couple of days ago I checked my internet speed was surprised to find I was getting 67mb, I only pay for 60mb!

The Meerkat3933d ago

Same here.

The only issue can be with the wireless range which seems a bit random.

But I have all my TV's and consoles wired and its lightning fast.

SniperControl3933d ago

I dont use there hub for wireless, that thing is as useless as a chocolate fire guard.

I have turned off the wireless, it now just acts as a modem only.

I bought a ASUS Black Knight wireless router for all my wireless needs.

I highly recommend doing the same, even the new hub is useless.

MrDead3933d ago

@SniperControl

Move your modem as you might be getting interference or ask for a new modem, I still get a good signal from my wireless in my garden and neighbours house.

SniperControl3932d ago

@MrDead

This is my 3rd hub from VM, I only had the new style hub installed last week, but because i have the Dark Knight, there is no way i am going to use the VM hub now.

domford19813933d ago

Have to agree with Septic, bad experiences with Virgin

fattyuk3933d ago

Nothing wrong with virgin!

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150°

Sony CEO says although AI "has been used for creation," it's "not a substitute for human creativity"

"AI is not a substitute for human creativity. We position it as a technology that supports creativity. Creativity resides in people. We will continue to contribute to people's creativity through technology," the CEO said.

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gamesradar.com
1nsomniac5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

...not yet but 100% within the next 10 years!

..Then Sony will use it like the drop of a hat. They're no different to the others.

isarai4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

They used to be 😞 sure it was always a business, and money's always the priority, but they used to have a very strong stance on supporting artists and creativity. "Dont f#@k with the artist" was a phrase they touted a few times back in the ps1-ps3 era, a philosophy carried over from their music branch PlayStation was created from. It's not COMPLETELY gone, but it's barely there compared to what it was back then, i just want them to return to that.

Eonjay4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

I am highly encouraged by their statement about human creativity. "Dont f#@k with the artist" is exactly what they are saying. But at the same time, I don't think people understand that Sony is a corporation. If they don't realize growth, they don't get to exist. When you say 'Sony', you are talking about a bunch of investors. To speak about them any other way is a illogical and incorrect. They haven't changed. They have been a group of investors since they became a public business.

isarai4d ago

Ugh, i really wish people would stop gambling people's livelihoods by turning a project/game into their political soapbox. Im all for statements and having your own opinion, but there's more people working on this than just druckman, ham fisting your political beliefs onto just seems inconsiderate for everyone elses job security when it can result in a failure due to people avoiding it for that reason.

I play games for escape, im so tired of nearly every AAA game blatantly dragging real world issues to shove in my face when I'm trying to take a break from it all. They don't even bother to be subtle about it, quite the opposite, it's blasted and force fed to you and it's just getting exhausting

Einhander19724d ago

People are taking a whole interview and cutting it down to clips that make him look bad and take what he actually was saying out of context. For example he also said things like this AI has "ethical issues we need to address"

-Foxtrot4d ago

@Einhander

Why defend him at this point?

It’s not taking things out of context, he said what he said.

Old ND would never talk about soulless AI taking over so many creative things they are well known for. The whole “ethical issues” is just a good PR spin people who push this crap fall back on to make their statements not seem as bad. So many AI lovers do this.

AI has no place is so many creative based things.

Einhander19724d ago

Well yeah, because everyone else is using it so they need to stay competitive. It's the same as paid online, they didn't want to go that route but their competition was making so much money they needed to add paid online just to keep up.

RaiderNation4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

AI will never replace humans in game development in terms of conceptualizing new games. Humans still need to come up with the ideas and what they want to implement. However much of the day to day menial coding could be AI driven to reduce production time and team size. I could also see AI being used for bug testing/optimization that could lead to better quality games at launch. I'm actually very optimistic about how AI can positively impact game development.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4d ago
XiNatsuDragnel4d ago

Good statement but hopefully this holds up

NotoriousWhiz4d ago

People that aren't software developers just don't understand the benefits of AI. People who's only exposure to A.I is the Terminator movie and other related sci fi films won't understand the benefits it provides.

It's not about replacing human labor. It's about making human labor easier.

Many years ago, I had laser eye surgery done. It was performed by a robot. The doctor took my measurements and calibrated the machine to make sure it would do what needed be done. And then the robot corrected my vision in 10 seconds.

15 years later and I still have 20/20 vision.

Eonjay4d ago

AI in and of itself is not a 'bad'. Money is bad. Money is evil, and corporations will do whatever they can to get more of it. They will find ways to implement AI to replace as may jobs as possible. This isn't even up for debate. It is the charge of the corporation to maximize returns for the investors. They have no choice. I'm a developer and I know that my job will absolutely be replaced. Therefore, I have decided to become an AI dev. AI has a lot of potential to help us solve problem on a scale most can't even imagine. The issue, as ever is that our monetary system only ever allows us to focus on greed and fiscal growth.

But I am a pragmatist. Perhaps an AI model can be built to help protect us from our most dangerous instincts and habits. And perhaps Congress can pass laws to protect us from people who would use AI to manipulate and control us (spoiler: they wont).

RaiderNation3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

Progress is inevitable. Nobody driving cars today is complaining that the horse and buggy is no longer around. Yes, some jobs will be lost but guess what? With innovation comes new job opportunities. It's how the cycle of the job market works.

150°

Sony Patents To Prevent You From In-Game Harassment By Reading Your Emotions

A new patent recently published by Sony wants to gather biometric data of gamers to track whether one is being harassed using AI tools.

Profchaos33d ago (Edited 33d ago )

I hope this is one of those patents that never comes to fruition.

I already dislike the fact you can pay a significant amount for a online service buy associated games and content on said service and get banned from that service over potentially a misunderstanding the bans are already handed out for flimsy reasons

I'd rather see money invested in a ban that simply removes the offensive players ability to communicate with unknown players allow them to continue party chats with friends but not with Joe blow on cod.

exputers33d ago

Agreed. Blizzard recently banned a college Overwatch 2 player who's dependent for saying "shit." Pretty harsh.

Profchaos32d ago (Edited 32d ago )

How rediculas really. You can't say a word that's allowed in most PG films and prime time TV but the game is based around killing the enemy team using guns, explosives etc.

It's just backwards.

just_looken32d ago

What your talking about is called block list

In 2006 a spaceship dropped of the playstation 3/xbox 360 i say that that generation was the last great gen with game functions/tech that has yet to comeback

Anyhow the playstation 3 if you block listed a id they could not talk to you in chatroom with either text or voice. But that was pre mind fucked 2018 when people were more human than sheep.

But hey gta 6 is coming out billion dollar budget without a single player custom character creator and without singeplayer coop off/online something saints row 1-3 had on the xbox 360.

z2g33d ago

Take my social security and bank account numbers too! Here’s a picture of my wife and our address.

phoenixwing33d ago

Cmon where's the pictures of your children. Don't hold out on them.

H933d ago

At this rate I feel Sony will eventually sell a room to play games in it where they can monitor your every breath

jambola32d ago

I genuinely get a bit worried sometimes when a friend says something that could be offensive In a party
Because I have no trouble believing some bans would happen when in a private party for saying something wrong

SegaSaturn66933d ago

I want them to censor erotic content by measuring my groin temperature so i dont get too distracted while playing black ops 2.

Popsicle33d ago

Terrible idea. Not only do I not consent to providing my biometric data, the potential for mishandling biometric data is almost a certainty. Positive stress and negative stress can produce similar changes in biometrics. Interpreting the precise emotion a person is feeling is not only invasive but could be easily misconstrued. I hope this never comes to fruition.

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130°

Sony Could Increase Your Game's Difficulty If It Sees You Complain About It

Sony has recently published a new patent that wants to dynamically handle the games' difficulty and gameplay based on the player's emotions.

jznrpg33d ago

This is something I might use. Sometimes I play some good games but they don’t have difficulty option and are a little too easy.

Profchaos33d ago

Souls games will be like that players struggling make it harder

PassNextquestion33d ago (Edited 33d ago )

I think if used correctly it could work well

jambola33d ago

cool idea
cool idea for horror games especially
the way it's explained here sounds like it could never be forced hopefully, so that's ok with me

Show all comments (8)