Hacking the PSP Blog

Firmware 3.10 Decrypted

Team C+D has done it again with a 0-day release of a firmware 3.10 decrypter. Don't get your hopes up quite yet but this release opens the door for the likes of Dark_AleX, Booster, Mathieulh, and the Noobz team to get their hards dirty with this new version of the PSP system software. Hopefully we'll soon see a new Dark_AleX custom firmware, an updated version of Booster's Devhook, or maybe even (gasp!) a downgrader. Anyway, you can download a copy of the decrypter from my homebrew software library by using the link below.

Download 3.10 Firmware Decrypter by Team C+D

Via PSPUpdates

Sony Expands PlayStation Spot

First there was the PlayStation Portable, and with it came PlayStation Spot, a retail download service offering game demo downloads for PSP owners.

Next came the PlayStation 3, and with it came PlayStation TV, a retail kiosk designed to let Japanese audiences sample the PS3's games and multimedia capabilities.

If you were one of the three people in America wondering if Sony would ever combine these two promotions into one, wonder no more! Starting 1/30, Sony has started making PlayStation TV terminals function as PlayStation Spot terminals. This means demo and item downloads for your PSP from the same place where you can sample upcoming PS3 games. That's, like, totally radical and cool!

Currently, Sony has 70 PlayStation TV locations set up for PlayStation Spot functionality. The company plans on eventually expanding to the full 1,035 network of PS3 kiosks.

Anoop Gantayat
January 30, 2007

Source: IGN

PlayStation 3 Advert Appears In Xbox 360 Game

Earlier this month EA announced plans to release a football game based on the UEFA Champions League event, also releasing some screenshot-style renders to accompany the announcement, one of which partially revealed a PlayStation 3 ad in the background…

Well, it would seem this early announcement screenshot was no one-off. Soon after we receive preview code from EA and as we quickly begin playing and taking screenshots it becomes very much apparent that the PlayStation 3 ads are still there, taking up space within a game that is not only running on an Xbox 360 but isn’t actually due out on PS3 at all. See the evidence here and here.

So what’s this all about then? Seems a bit sneaky of Sony and how and why on earth did Microsoft let this happen? Well, it would seem there is something of a quirk in play, which dictates the presence of the PS3 ad regardless of what machine is running the game.

You see, having taken a look at the official UEFA site, it would seem Sony (and indeed the PlayStation brand) is just one of the sponsorship partners of the UEFA Champions League competition, which would guarantee it placement on anything to do with the event and that includes Xbox 360 games.

And there’s not really anything Microsoft can do about it. In order for the Xbox 360 to receive a version of the title, Microsoft has to simply accept the facts and rules of the sponsorship and, er, ‘play ball’, otherwise it misses out.

Which is quite a nice bonus for Sony, who by sponsoring the UEFA event not only enjoys the plentiful TV exposure, but gets to add in clauses that stipulate versions of the game appearing on competing consoles are forced to carry PS3 advertising.

Touché Sony, touché.

Jay Filmer
January 31, 2007

Source: 360 Gamer

Sorta Off Topic: PS3 pulls down Q3 earnings for Sony

(from Reed Business Information... if you want to know how Sony's doing financially, here's a good article on their latest reporting...) -Auri

Filmed entertainment sales leaped 46% on Da Vinci Code, Talladega Nights DVDs
By Susanne Ault 1/30/2007

JAN. 30 | Despite gains in its film and DVD division, Sony Corp. recorded fiscal third-quarter earnings fall-offs, partly because of expenses related to its debut of the PlayStation 3.

For the three months ended Dec. 31, Sony posted 159.9 billion yen ($1.34 billion). That marks a 5.3% drop from the comparable 2005 period.

Total revenue jumped 9.8% to 2.6 trillion yen ($21.9 billion).

Thanks to high DVD revenue for box-office hits The Da Vinci Code, Talladega
Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby and Click, Sony filmed entertainment sales soared 46% to 297 billion yen ($2.5 billion). Other bright spots were theatrical successes Casino Royale and The Pursuit of Happyness.

The performance of the company¹s game division was mixed, however.
 Sony officials said 1.84 million units of the PS3 were shipped worldwide during the quarter, which contributed to an overall 5.6% sales lift in Sony¹s game unit to 442.8 billion yen ($3.7 billion). But the game division drew an operating income loss of 54.2 billion yen ($455 million).

³This deterioration was primarily the result of the loss arising from the sale of PS3 at strategic price points, as well as the recording of other charges in association with the preparation for the launch of the PS3 platform,² stated Sony officials in an earnings release.

In a Tuesday call with analysts, Sony representatives acknowledged currently weak tie-in ratios for software titles bought per PS3 console sold. But they remained upbeat because tie-in ratios are pacing better than PlayStation 2¹s launch ratios.

Sony also was hurt by softening shipments of PS2 and PlayStation Portable hardware, each of which were hit by decreases of 1.24 million units and 4.46 million units, respectively, versus fiscal third-quarter 2005. For the 2006 period, PS2 shipments reached 4.11 million, and PSP was at 1.76 million units.

Also, PS2 software shipments fell by 15 million units to 78 million units total shipped for the quarter.

Sony electronics lines fared well, most notably its Bravia LCD TV line and Cyber-shot digital cameras. Sales in this unit rose 16.9% to 1.87 trillion
($15.7 billion).

Although Sony¹s fiscal third quarter experienced certain shortfalls, the company has raised its outlook for its fiscal year ended March 31. The company predicts its net income will equal 110 billion yen, which is up 38% from its last forecast in October.
 
© 2006 Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc.