account linking
basically every game sold has a serial number and they link it to a psn account on a master server. If you sell the game the next person who buys it needs your account or it will not work.
Easy to implement if you are willing to survive the backlash.
They could also put in a transfer fee - if you sell the game they will transfer the rights for X$ to the new person - say 20% of the original cost. This would still allow transfers but also allow them to make money on the used market.
You could also store all saves online - and require them to use the linked game to use the saves.
(with a tech support division to help if someone damaged their original discs - but that is cheap if you can keep all the aftermarket sales to yourself)
This option is more palatable now - especially since they now have an account loyalty program. Before trophies people might have sold their accounts as well as the game but since they are attempting to entangle people into loyalty programs it makes it easier to make a account a permanent thing.
This has been discussed at several dev conferences and while it is held as a good idea... no one wants to risk the consumer backlash as of yet and without an account loyalty program it was thought to be a non starter(though we have been comparing it to MMOs recently)
View
