Community
Headlines
| Feb 9, 2012 S&P Downgrades Sony's Credit Rating |
|
| Feb 7, 2012 SoE, GSA Inaugurate Gamer Safety Week |
|
| Jan 30, 2012 EQ to Become Free-to-Play |
|
| Jan 26, 2012 Sony Releases Q&A with Chris “Dzarn” Black |
|
| Jan 17, 2012 Keep Current with Our New RSS Feed! |
| Feb 9, 2012 S&P Downgrades Sony's Credit Rating |
|
| Feb 7, 2012 SoE, GSA Inaugurate Gamer Safety Week |
|
| Jan 30, 2012 EQ to Become Free-to-Play |
|
| Jan 26, 2012 Sony Releases Q&A with Chris “Dzarn” Black |
|
| Jan 17, 2012 Keep Current with Our New RSS Feed! |
Latest News
S&P Downgrades Sony's Credit Rating
Feb 9, 2012
Poor performance, global competition cited in the downgrade
 In a move which shocked some, credit agency Standard & Poor's has come forward regarding Sony, downgrading the Japan-based entertainment giant's credit rating. Quoting the text report released by Reuters: "Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today lowered its long-term corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings on Sony Corp. to 'BBB+' from 'A-' and removed the ratings from CreditWatch, where we placed them Nov. 4, 2011. The outlook on the long-term corporate credit rating is negative. We base the downgrade on our view that severe circumstances in Sony's mainstay electronics businesses make a strong recovery in earnings unlikely. We base the negative outlook on the long-term corporate credit rating on our expectation that we could lower the ratings further if we see no meaningful sign of a recovery in Sony's earnings within six to 12 months. We affirmed the 'A-2' short-term corporate credit rating on the company." The report continues to state that Sony has had a series of revenue downfalls since 2004's fiscal year, also saying that the major contributor is, "Sony's strategy to aggressively expand its global market share despite strong competition, a massive erosion of prices, and its high cost structure compared with overseas competitors." S&P also stated it is watching Sony's path toward recovery in the TV sales market to determine if any further downgrades will occur. Gaming division not mentioned
It should be noted that the report made no mention of the gaming division (owner of several gaming studios and several MMO titles including EverQuest, EverQuest II and DC Universe Online) as a reason for success or failure for the company, who employs approximately 168k employees worldwide.According to sources, the gaming division is unaffected by this downgrade and is looking forward to positive growth this year with its IP DC Universe Online having been announced as "Best MMO of 2011" by PC Gamer. There has been no official statement made by Sony as of the time we went to print. However, we will continue to provide details as they become available. Update (2/9/2012): Corrected information pertaining to the gaming division after contact with sources inside Sony. |
 |
|
|
Posted by
SoE, GSA Inaugurate Gamer Safety Week
Feb 7, 2012
Event dedicated to account and gamer security begins today
 Today, the Merchant Risk Council announced the inauguration of Gamer Safety Week, an effort of the Gamer Safety Alliance. Formed in 2007, this network of gaming companies is stated as, "a cross-industry effort to break down traditional competitive barriers and share information and best practices within the computer and video game industry." “We pulled together some of the world’s top online entertainment companies and created the Gamer Safety Alliance to foster a greater awareness of safer gaming principles and best practices,” said Steve Levy, Global Director of Publishing for NCsoft West and founding member of the Gamer Safety Alliance. “The goal of Gamer Safety Week is to reach as many gamers as possible to inform and educate about how to have fun in a safer way.” Thus far, nine studios have joined the effort. These include EA, En Masse Entertainment, Microsoft, MindCandy, NCSoft, Nexon, Square Enix and Turbine. In an open letter to players, Linda Carlson (Global Communications Director for Sony Online Entertainment) kicked off Gamer Safety Week by warning players of the risks of a compromised account and simple measures to prevent account theft. Carlson explains the typical way players learn of account theft: "It’s 2:00 a.m. Friday morning—you are fast asleep, resting up for your big raid on Saturday. While you dream of rare loot drops, a person utterly unknown to you logs into your account and starts to strip it. If you’re lucky, they only sell off your equipment and broker items. It’s more likely that they will attempt to collect everything you have, even packing up your house items, and then sell it all to the broker. Then they use your Station Cash to buy a character transfer token, transfer your character to a new server, and give all your plat to some low level character named Ureiwoeri (or something similar – we apologize if there is an actual character out there named Ureiwoeri). Sometimes they delete your character, whether this is done for spite or just to attempt to cover the trail, we really don’t know. Years worth of personal investment is simply gone." More information about Gamer Safety Week can be found at the Merchant Research Council website. |
|
|
|
EQ to Become Free-to-Play
Jan 30, 2012
Early March signals beginning of EQ F2P
 On March 18, 2012, Everquest will turn 13 years old. As such, it is the longest running paid MMORPG still in service. This morning, Everquest Executive Producer Thom Terrazas announced that beginning in early March, Everquest will be free-to-play. According to Terrazas, this move is intended to make the game more accessible to every type of player. Players who log in after the change will receive a welcome pack. Amongst other things, player will receive a unique Mercenary to fight by the player's side, Bayle Marks and Experience Potions. Quoting from the Official Announcement: We, the EverQuest dev team, are very excited about this new flexible system. Free-To-Play is the best fit for EverQuest and we are looking forward to supporting the game and our dedicated fans for years to come. This is a great year for everyone associated with EverQuest and SOE. We think you'll be pleasantly surprised at what's coming in 2012. We will continue to bring you further news and information about this development as its available. |
|
|
|