BT and Sony to offer advanced communications for the PSP
BT and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) have signed a groundbreaking deal to transform the PSP (PlayStation®Portable) gaming device by adding wireless broadband communications functions, including high quality handheld video calls, voice calls and messaging.
Context & Ripple Effects
BT and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe are turning the PSP into a communications endpoint: a confirmed deal adds wireless broadband voice calls, video calls and messaging to the handheld, with gamers able to reach other PSP owners and some BT phones. As the BBC's same-day report on net calls for the Sony handheld underscores, this is BT putting its network onto someone else's device rather than defending its own handset business.
The move lands alongside a busy stretch for Sony's hardware strategy: a confirmed camera-and-microphone accessory will be required for PSP calling, while an analyst-reported PSP refresh this year remains unconfirmed and talk of a US 80GB PS3 stays at rumor stage.
First-order effects
- PSP owners gain voice, video and messaging over wireless broadband, but only by buying the newly announced camera-and-microphone add-on, making the accessory the deal's immediate revenue hook.
- BT extends its calling reach beyond its own handsets onto Sony's installed base of PSPs, with call termination initially limited to other PSP owners and some BT lines.
Second-order effects
- Mobile operators face a Wi-Fi route around cellular minutes on a mass-market entertainment device, pressuring them to respond with their own data-bundled calling offers.
- Nintendo's rival handheld now competes against a device that doubles as a communications tool, raising the bar for what a portable console bundle must include.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, telcos increasingly partner with consumer-electronics makers to carry traffic on non-phone devices, shifting competition from owning the handset to terminating calls wherever the user already is.
- Handheld gaming hardware drifts toward converged communications platforms, with accessories like cameras and microphones becoming the bridge before such functions are built in.
The trend: Fixed-line operators are pushing their voice services onto third-party gaming devices, turning handheld consoles into early testbeds for device-agnostic broadband calling.