Oct 08, 07
One of our major concerns about the viability of Sony's PlayStation Home social networking/online bachelor pad creator is how it will handle advertising without alienating (read: pissing off) its users. The question is, will you really be able to enjoy yourself in Sony's virtual world if every corner you turn someone's trying to sell something to you?
Our fears have been compounded by the back end of a Sony press release announcing the appointment of a Director of Network Advertising, heading up the ominously titled In-Game Advertising Business Unit. The worrying news comes in the last paragraph:
"SCEA will depict brands in various forms within the game, where users would expect to see them in real life on billboards and posters, on shopping bags and soda cans and on images of TV screens. SCEA will continue to explore ways to incorporate dynamic advertising into other online environments."
