PlayStation 3 Delayed
Sony will delay the release of its much-awaited PlayStation 3 gaming console until November from its planned spring debut because more work is needed on its next-generation DVD technology, the company said on March 15, the Associated Press reported.
Ken Kutaragi, the head of Sony's video-games division, made the announcement at a hastily called news conference in Tokyo after reports of the delay surfaced in the Japanese business daily newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun and other papers.
The PlayStation 3 is critical for Sony Corp.'s profits and brand image, so the delay is a major setback for the Japanese electronics and entertainment company as it struggles to mount a recovery after several years of poor earnings, the AP reported.
Kutaragi said Sony is still trying to finalize the copyright protection technology and other standards for the Blu-ray DVD disc, the format for PlayStation 3, and next-generation video for the company's electronics gadgets in the works.