Sony Confirms Importance of Downloadable Games in 2009

Kris Erickson • Mar 26, 2009 • Comments ()

Head of Marketing John Koller told journalists recently that he expects major growth in the market for downloadable games in the remainder of 2009. Sony's PlayStation Store, which is accessible directly from the PSP handheld, allows customers to purchase and download full games directly to the memory stick, obviating the need for clunky UMD disks. Koller imagines a future in which all UMD games and downloadable versions are released simultaneously.

"Holistically, the idea of digital distribution fits into the world as we go forward. Not to say that retail isn't of extreme importance, because it is. But the idea of offering content to consumers, to make it easy, you can wake up in the morning, download something and go, it's very appealing. So one of our big pushes this year is to be sure that the right kind of content and the right kind of games in particular are placed on the PlayStation Network for download on the PSP."

Koller was careful not to upset retailers with his comments, but it is difficult to imagine who shops like Gamestop will be able to profit in a world of instant downloads. Nevertheless, Koller said that PSP owners can expect to see a lot more content appearing on the PSN in the second half of the year. We imagine that the first games to see simultaneous PSN/UMD releases will be first-party titles like MotorStorm: Arctic Edge.

All of this talk adds heft to rumors that the next psp will not include an optical drive of any kind, instead relying on digital downloads or cartridges for new games.