Sony Computer Entertainment To Officially Acquire Gaikai

Dual Pixels - We knew Sony was holding out on E3 and it's finally surfaced that Sony will officially be acquiring the cloud streaming service Gaikai. To keep the chatter to minimal, here's the official press release below.

[sinncross]

O.O

Guess it was true!

[jujubee88]

Yup. There is a SCE press release and everything.

(Man, I would swim buck naked in a pile of 380 mil $1's. Just sayin'!)

[nukeitall]

I'm questioning if it is worth it. Think about it, anyone can pretty much build and employ this technology so why spend $380 million?

It's not like Sony needed Gaikai's customers. The Playstation brand is far stronger than Gaikai.

@jujubee88:

If I had $380 million, I'd buy an Hawaii Island like Larry Ellison of Oracle, and then spend the rest of my time towards investment charity!

[jujubee88]

Hey, that is a pretty sensible way of spending those riches. You get to be on an island where people do not hunt you or bother you, plus you can donate to a charity you want. (I did not rationalize anything out, I just wrote down a gut feeling of what I would do with that money.)

Maybe, it really was not as simple as just spending $380 mil. I think Gaikai have their tech patented (like Onlive), so there must be a reason.

[BattleAxe]

Looks like Sony will now have a presence on PCs, Tablets and Smart Phones. I'm sure all those Apple customers can't wait to be playing Sony exclusive games on their iPads XD

[JoySticksFTW]

I admit it.

Scrooge McDuck came to mind immediately :)

Except he's probably swimming in 380 mil $100 dollar bills.

He wipes his arse with $1's.

[miyamoto]

Oh CRAP! Would Samsung Galaxy be the next official PlayStation Mobile Platform Partner!!!!

This is too good to be true!

If Sony lands PS Mobile on Google hardware its Sayonara to the competition.

This is gangstah! Backwards compatibility will be a non issue anymore.

Happy times for gaming up ahead.
Sony is always one step ahead. More free games.

[gaffyh]

This is huge news for PlayStation, and shows that Sony are really thinking ahead. I wondered why all the rumours came out before E3 and then we heard nothing at E3, perhaps something will be announced at GamesCom?

[NewsForSnowflakes]

Just to warn you...

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[sjaakiejj]

It was bought in shares valued at $380 million though, so there aren't any actual bills. If Sony were to go bankrupt, Gaikai's owners would earn absolutely nothing on this deal, and they're probably not allowed to leave the company or sell the shares for X number of years.

[Diver]

sorry nukeitall but not anyone can do it. onlive has tried but gaikai has less lag an better image quality. if anyone could do it ever one would. sony been leading ever new format and digital distro is the next one.

[LAZL0-Panaflex]

I called it. Tablets and smart phones. Read my history. Now the question is ps+ equals free access? Or is it free for all psn,....my guess you can buy the games cheap outright and ps+ is beefed up big time. Imagine the demos and trials zero downloads now, and nomore space taken up on my harddrive. I wish i could see microshafts reaction.

[Patriots_Pride]

Lol - Just dont dive into a vault full of gold.

[sikbeta]

Massive trolling lol they were denying the whole deal for months already, haha

I hope they can come up with something awesome with the so called "future of gaming"... like... Streaming PS2 games on Vita, :drool: Cloud Based Backward Compatibility :O

[MaxXAttaxX]

.

[Blasphemy]

@ nukeitall To get rid of competition.

[SilentNegotiator]

It had better pay off. They're in no position to make huge risks without fast, strong rewards.

[OhMyGandhi]

that would be alot of papercuts.

[Persistantthug]

If Gaikai can deliver PS3 Backwards compatibility to the PS4, then this solves their tech problem with how are Sony gonna deliver B/C with no Cell since they were reportedly using AMD as a CPU/GPU package.

The issue wasn't so much the games on disk....but more importantly, was the games everyone purchased in the PSN store.

Of course, with a Gaikai service...they can now do both.

Awesome :)

Edit in.....
BUT SONY'S BROKE!
SONY DOESN'T HAVE ANY MONEY!
*obvious sar* (never mind)

[shoddy]

Sony and vita is TEH DOOOOOOMMM!!!!!!!!

[ChunkyLover53]

This isn't true backwards compatibility though, I thought the same thing pretty much, but Sony will obviously charge people for this "backwards compatibility". So it'll be just like the PS2/PS3, you'll have to pay for the games again.

I'd take hardware or emulated backwards compatibility any day of the week.

[GribbleGrunger]

This is BIG! I've been saying for quite some time now that the PS4 will be Sony's last console. It will cater for the gamer who wants to download from PSN, the gamer that wants a hard copy and the gamer who wants to subscribe (probably with PS+) to new gaming experiences.

What this means for the future is that Sony will only have to upgrade server side and there will be no need for another console, just an improved build of PS4, rather like Sky Boxes do now. BC is assured and every Sony branded product will use the cloud in one way or another. People wonder why Sony aren't worried about the Vita... well here's why

[R6ex]

Sorry, but PS3 will be Sony's last console. With Cloud Gaming, you don't need much processing power at the gamer's end. PS3 will be more than enough to stream any future-gen cloud games.

Gaikai has already hinted that one of the console-makers [Sony] won't be making a new console [PS4]:
http://www.industrygamers.c...

[ravinash]

Your forgetting the gaming is a world wide industry.
While places like the US, Japan and Even the UK in some places will be able to handle the traffic from streaming games.
Most places it the world are still very limited if they have any connection at all.

I'm sure Sony will be building on such services in future to stay in the game and offer many services, but there will still be a console for many years to come while it's still cost effectve to continue selling to such markets.

[nukeitall]

I don't see this as a good thing at all. Whatever implementation they are doing, is just another iteration of Gaikai.

Did any of you use Gaikai before the merger? Why would you think you would afterwards?

Fact of the matter is, with excellent internet connection the experience is still subpar. Heck, I avoid remote desktop or remote control software because it is sloooow. That uses far less bandwidth than say an intensive game that requires lag free input.

If you can't even roll out, digital only sale of games on console yet, we are a far way from gaming in the cloud to replace what we have now, let alone in next generation.

I don't even see how BC is going to work without charging you more for each game. How are they going to verify you own the game? Have you mail it in? Disc verification isn't likely possible as that needs to be planned in advance. Will this be another PSP Go trade-in fiasco?

Waste of money Sony! You could have saved it and build the network out yourself. This isn't rocket technology and is fairly easy to do.

[Patriots_Pride]

Sure ignore the millions of customers who live in 3rd world countries where internet is a luxury.

[dead_eye]

@Patriots_Pride

Are they really going to be early adopters of a new console? If not then your not really losing out on much. Cheaper old tech would probably make you more money.

[Tru_Blu]

Day it goes all digital is the day I quit gaming. One example is I got AC:Revelations at BB for $19.99 new. On PSN it costs $59.99. When the market is cornered prices are going to go through the roof.

[TheRealHeisenberg]

@ Tru_Blu

I don't think this acquisition is a bad thing. I do agree with your points though. Hopefully there will be enough competition out there to keep things balanced.

[Blacktric]

One of the best moves Sony ever did. Think of the damn possibilities. Gaikai, even in its current state, is a great service. It's free, it's fast, it's available to many countries as long as you have enough bandwidth. Now imagine being able to literally stream PS3 games like Killzone 3 onto your Vita or like the earlier reports suggested, being able to play PS2 classics like Hitman 2 that cannot be ported to PS3 due to technical difficulties. Whatever Sony is planning, I am sure it is going to be amazing.

[adonis183]

omgg yess ,, cant wait for this. This is fucking awesome i always went to the library at school to use gaikai. I hope sony includes that new router N on the slimmer PS3.

SONY Rulesssss

[bobbyluv]

This also might mean they'll update the ps3's flash player since gaikai was made to run on a browser.

[GuyThatPlaysGames]

This "cloud gaming" is not the future of gaming.

[JoGam]

Then what is sir?

[GuyThatPlaysGames]

The good ole disc is still the future!

[Braid]

In fact it actually seems like the future of gaming, it's just this future I'm talking about is not a close one. Maybe after the next (and possibly the last) physical media oriented consoles, in the following 10-15 years.

[LackTrue4K]

"and they say Sony is broke?!? is that another rumor to???"

[demetreHG]

Nobody knows Sony financial situation then f..ckin Sony ( and they ain't broke ,far from it )

I think this a awesome news plus there isn't going to be any PS4 which even better news =D

agree or don't who cares that is the truth !!!

[Eyeco]

yeah now this furthers the question...

PS4 to have cloud gaming capabilities ?

[Jamzluminati]

Sony proving why they are the best at this whole gaming thing.

TGSI

[Motorola]

A rumor that was true??

[Pandamobile]

Not sure how I feel about this.

[3GenGames]

Like it's insurance for the company they're buying, but destined for failure when they figure out people will not give up actually being able to own a physical product instead of renting something until they take it away from you.

[NJShadow]

There's still gonna be a pretty large demographic that goes after this form of content delivery.

I personally prefer buying physical copies of games, but I know a lot of folks who already prefer buying and playing games with the touch of a button. While I'm not sure if I'd use it, I think it's gonna be huge. (Actually, who knows, I may very well end up using it...)

[nukeitall]

I think technology increase will outgrow the need for investment into the cloud. We are soon going to hit a ceiling due to 1080p HD being the standard for at least a decade if not two.

That means, after next generation consoles will be cheap so why bother with laggy streaming service. I would rather build the ability to intelligently stream game assets (like textures and sound) so that you can immediately play, but run it off your local cheap hardware.

[fr0sty]

Tell that to every PS+ subscriber... or live subscriber as well since you only "rent" your online play.

[badz149]

that's why STEAM is doomed, right? /s

[soljah]

actually quite the opposite Sony has learned thru the PS plus service that people are ready to pay a fee to have access to games. now think about having PS+ but no dling want lbp2 click on it and start playing

[GodHandDee]

This is a very forward thinking approach by Sony and it's a good one. Going into the future they will already have a solid background in streaming and will definitely use it their gaming consoles as an option to consumers. And also this means they will get money from other sources such as Samsung that makes use of Gaikai in their TVs.

[telekineticmantis]

on PS3. Just when I was considering going full PC exclusive next gen, they restore my faith in consoles.

[CaitSith]

Nice.

[NastyLeftHook0]

!

[KingOptimusOrigin111]

Good Job Sony!!!

[joab777]

This is awesome for Sony...a bit of good news in a really bad year for Sony. And great for next Gen consoles, though it will b interesting to c how they implement it exactly.

[xtremexx]

A really bad year?!?!!?!?! Lol what are you talking about.

[Oh_Yeah]

this is great! but my guess is your going to have to hook your ps3 directly to a computer or purchase an updated wireless adapter though...because the wireless in the ps3 isnt all that great unless you have some ridiculous speeds, i dont think itll be quick enough for decent loading times, no lag or 1:1 input from your controller for the majority...hope im wrong though.

[Oh_Yeah]

the great thing about this...even tho there will be some lag, youll probably be able to play all the pc exclusives on your ps3 like amnesia, diablo, the witcher etc.

[black911]

HipHopGamer reported this long ago. I guess it was true.

[Ulf]

I will NEVER, EVER sign up for a streaming game service, and put up with 100-250ms extra control lag, at a minimum. If that's the future... I got better things to do with my time.

That inherent lag will *never* go down -- you can't "fix" the frickin' speed of light through 1000+ miles of fiber optic cabling, or, more importantly, the throughput of the routers that direct the streaming video/music/email spam/pr0n traffic of the internet elsewhere so you can have a good gaming experience. IPv6 will help a *little*, but by then even more fools will be iTunes'ing television to their mobile devices, and the problem will be even worse.

[Sanquine90]

Fool , it could be that you do not have to download a DEMO. Therefore, you could play the game immediatly on demand:)

[humbleopinion]

Yes, this is really sad. I'm still hoping that the main purpose of this purchase will be for serving as a backward compatible + steaming on demand demos.

But for actual games? God forbid. Streaming compression makes even 1080p streams look worse than current gen games, and the lag is a killer for action intensive games.

[Shikoro]

I agree. If this becomes the standard "medium" for playing games next-gen and there is no way for me to play from a disc or a hard drive, I quit gaming.

[NastyLeftHook0]

This news is also important because it shows investment in new products with the obvious attempt to provide an optimum gaming experience and shows a glimpse into the future of playstation products as we know them.

I cannot think of a more exciting time to be a gamer, the advancements in gaming should be phenominal and the creative minds may once again blow us away next gen as they have with this one.

[Y_5150]

Now that rumor was true, I think that 254 page document for the 720 rumor is true! Not sure if the number was correct.

[NastyLeftHook0]

The access of information in this digital age is staggering, Many things have been revealed to be true, but nonetheless tons of things were debunked.

[Y_5150]

Examples: NGP being called PS Vita rumor was true despite people whining on how stupid the name was at the time.
A new God of War for PS3.
Oh and Plastation All Stars Battle Royale, we all knew that for a long time before that was announced. Also people whined about the name as well at the time. :P

[izumo_lee]

It was rumored that David Perry was willing to sell Gaikai for $500 million (so $380 million is a steal) so those rumors about Sony acquiring the company were true. With this acquisition Sony is more prepared for a digital OPTION and in time with more capable internet be a better service, then ever before. The enhancements to the PSN will be greatly increased thanks to this.

Being a PS plus member i can not wait to see what other services Sony will provide with the purchase of Gaikai. Anywhere close to the level Valve provides with Steam is a 'plus'.

This can only be a positive & will greatly improve the foundation of Sony, not just the Playstation brand....IF they do not mess it up.

[VsAssassin]

Hmmm... could be good; however, Onlive has this kind of service and I'm not sure if it's getting enough supporters to begin with. That said, it's possible that Sony is acquiring GaiKai not for the streaming service alone, but maybe for a much more profound GaiKai technology they're planning to infuse with the PS4.

[black911]

But I have a upcoming gaikai app on my samsung TV for streaming games. I havent checkecked the app in months but this app led me to believe that this was all just a rumor.

[wenaldy]

LOL HHG prophecy was true.

[El_Assenso]

LMAO!!! Yep!!!

[LycanGav]

Vita SAVED!

[GribbleGrunger]

It's good to know that someone else can see what this means. bubble to you, sir

[LycanGav]

It's not hard to visualize a point in the near future where Sony can simply iterate on all it's hardware and use this service to deliver a large library of games to all. No more expensive R&D developing consoles, the battle now will be securing content.

[GribbleGrunger]

And that content WILL get secured. This service will come through Bravia TVs, Laptops, pads, phones, Vitas and anything related to Sony. with Sony 1st party games leading the way, this service will grow many times over the years

say goodbye to a potential PS5 people, PS4 is going to be the last console we will ever see from Sony. who needs upgraded hardware when infinite upgrades can be accomplished server side.

I'll still buy a hard copy myself, but I might just play a game or two to find out what they're like BEFORE I buy. It's not just about games either... but I'm a gamer so I'll leave that to others to expand upon

[TemplarDante]

Cloud gaming is a way of expanding.
Now this and Playstation Mobile, the world of Playstation has entered the world of Android OS integration.
Good on Sony.

[KonaBro]

Megaton.

[DiRtY]

1.2 billion USD loss last year for SCE and they go out and buy Gaikai for another 400 million... And people were scared that MS is moneyhatting.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum...

[user7792788]

Gotta spend money to make money.

[Mikhail]

Deficit in the balance sheet is different from net loss in the income statement. Just google those to know the difference

[plmkoh]

Finally someone who knows about business without regurgitating doom 'n gloom just because someone told them that was the case.

Working capital (cash flow) is the most important factor in a business, it doesn't matter how profitable you are selling pancakes for $100 a pop, but when you don't have enough incoming cash to pay back your loans, you're going to would up pretty quickly.

That is what Sony has: Cash flow, they just aren't profitable.

[DiRtY]

@plmkoh

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[Chaostar]

"The Cell Broadband Engine that powered the PS3 cost $400m to develop; the main SoC for the incoming console is likely to be a 3D stack incorporating thru-silicon-via technology and could be the first $1bn hardware design project."

http://mandetech.com/2012/0...

[Tyre]

@Chaostar, thx for the link...most important information. This is some serious hardware that Sony is developing for the PS4. It is very clear that current networks won’t work and have limitations in bandwidth. Sony doesn't want to use Gakai at 1st, but later in the lifetime of the PS4.

[Outside_ofthe_Box]

You seem upset that Sony bought it instead of MS..

[DigitalAnalog]

I believe they are preparing the necessary tools needed to combat the next-gen. So far, there has been a lot of stuff that happened this gen was unpredictable such as the rise of mobile gaming and the casual expansion from the Wii.

That being said, I don't think SONY is going all out with "cloud" gaming. They would most likely test the waters with cloud such as possible PS2 game streaming. Maybe make PS Home a streaming service (which would benefit if Home was powered by actual PC's).

Depending on the situation, the cloud may introduce new features to the system itself. It really does depend how the market trend goes next-gen.

[Malice-Flare]

so, what does this mean for PS4, especially that nVidia is providing the backbone for Gaikai? probably nothing, but PS-PS3 compatibility is now guaranteed for PS4 through streaming...

[jonboi24]

Wait so they bought out Gaikai and are now partnering with Onlive with their Sony internet player, damn SONY. Are they trying to corner the cloud gaming market?

[adonis183]

lol ps vita battling nintendo PS3 battling microsoft sony gaikai battling onlive lol sony rules

[THC CELL]

And people say Sony have no money. This is not the only company Sony bought out this week lol

[Fishy Fingers]

It's not that they dont have money, rather they're failing to MAKE money. Their net worth is 10% what it was a decade ago.

I guess "you gotta spend money to make money" blah blah. They're gaming division being one of the few to turn a profit, this seems like a smart way to go. Less on consumer hardware, and your games on any (Internet linked) device you want, Sony or not.

[ravinash]

With less people needing to make the investment to get the hardware, it will be easier to sell more games.
While I perfer to use my own console because then I don't have to worry about line speed and when they decide to pull a game off the system.
I can see the benefits of doing this to bring new people in who normally don't have a console.

[crinale]

It begins...

[miDnIghtEr20C_SfF]

And it only took 6 years for it to begin, and the end of a console generation!

[C0MPUT3R]

SONY keeps buying all these companies.
.
And I'm always told they have no money and they're going out of business.
.
The haters need to come up with some new propaganda.

[Fishy Fingers]

And watch opinions towards cloud gaming change on N4G.

[chela]

yea, now they gna tell you hundreds stories about lag in kinect but non about cloud gaming xD

[J_Cob]

Your comment actually scares me because I know it's going to happen.

[Silly gameAr]

I'm more expecting a flood of articles claiming how cloud gaming is doomed because Sony decided to get in the game.

[DonMingos]

Not yet... Now is time for the birth of new breed of Cloud haters, that will become inconditional lovers of the system, when M$ buys Onlive

[Jazz4108]

Ms will just make there own version of cloud gaming through live if it takes off. They don't have to buy companies to have it if you can create your own. Anyways I think this is a horrible move for a non profitale company to buy another company that's tanking. We are at least 10 years out to have this kind of gaming even work so I hope sony is inito for the long haul or this is a terrible move.

[HappyWithOneBubble]

Sony is getting the PS4 ready. This is a good buy for them.

[IHateYouFanboys]

uh oh........if sony stream their games to tvs/blu-ray players/ps vita/ps3/phones etc, that then means that they will have ZERO exclusives for their fanboys to cream themselves over!!!!! good lord, what have they done!?!?!?

seriously though, i think its probably a good investment, but 380 mil is a hell of a lot of money for something thats unproven and unlikely to be mainstream for another 10 years, especially for a company thats in as bad a financial state as sony is.

also, Gaikai isnt available in my country, probably never will be, and even if it was thered probably be 1 server location in the entire country meaning its impossible to get better than 300-400ms of lag, rendering streaming games completely useless. yay australia and our prehistoric internet infrastructure.....

[DonMingos]

Where do you live? Pluto??

just give it a try: http://www.gaikai.com/

If it is available here on Portugal with no breaks... it is available everywhere

[DivineAssault]

they still have a ps4 coming, vita, & many ps3 titles ALL physical copies as well as digital! gaikai will only ADD to the diversity

[LNDCalling]

For a company purported by many to be in financial difficulty they aren't half flashing the cash!

In 2012:-

USD 1,000,000,000 (Invested in camera image sensor production)
USD 623,000,000 (Invested in Olympus)
USD 380,000,000 (To acquire Gaikai)
USD 2,200,000,000 (EMI - as 50/50 JV assume circa USD1bn from Sony)
USD ??? (Sony and Panasonic OLED TV joint venture)

And late 2011:-

USD 1,470,000,000 (To acquire Ericsson)

And these are just a few of their recent investments / acquisitions.

Back on topic, I think this is a good move in all sorts of ways especially if implemented correctly and one that could send shockwaves through the industry depending what they do with it… interesting times!

[ElementX]

Cloud gaming will never take off. Just downloading an update off PSN takes forever, I can't imagine streaming all the data needed for gaming. Plus you have bandwidth caps with ISPs and such...

[DivineAssault]

thats why vita was created & im sure ps4 will be built to take FULL advantage of all this.. PS3 might not cuz of its limited ram but not vita & im sure not ps4.. the psn could just do a massive update & itl be slick as butter

[TBM]

my updates take no more than 5-10 mins depending on how big it is. i have a very good ISP so i'm not worried.

[MYSTERIO360]

excellent news hopefully this will allow sony to boost their internet connection as well as offer ps2 titles.

[mayberry]

If it means I can finally play "black"... cool beans bro!

[EffectO]

Cloud gaming to become popular at n4g confirmed.

[PirateThom]

I would have prefered they used that money to buy a development studio or 4... Streaming is wholly useless in the majority of the world and unless it's free or comes as part of PS+, I wouldn't use it on any platform.

[Captain Tuttle]

I think its safe to say that this will be behind a pay wall.

Good move for Sony though, I think. Kaz is being very aggressive, let's see what he does with it.

[ChunkyLover53]

Now everyone has to re-backtrack! Originally everyone hated streaming services, when it was rumored Sony was buying one, all of a sudden people loved the idea! Then when Sony did nothing at E3, people went back to hating it, funny to see all the love for it yet again!

N4G cracks me up sometimes!

[Jake_the_Dog]

I like Sony, but I still hate cloud gaming. This seems like a big waste of money, and Sony can't continue to keep losing money if it wants to stay in this business.

[bahabeast]

sony money long. this is great news and im looking forward to everything sony will bring, apple better hurry with that apple tv before sony makes one and roots up the entire industry. i see a killer sony platstation smart tv inbound.

[hotrider12]

dude, SONY already have SONY TV on the market instead of GOOGLE TV bought SONY tv it comes with bluray player. bought mines for 197.00 recently amazon.com

[joeorc]

"dude, SONY already have SONY TV on the market it comes with bluray player. bought mines for 197.00 recently amazon.com"

yupper's Google TV topset box they just released @ google IO on the 28th.

http://www.slashgear.com/io...

and if people do not see where this is going

A open Platform:

The fastest, most powerful, lowest-latency cloud network on the market

Gaikai offers a bleeding-edge open platform technology that allows the most demanding games and applications to be seamlessly streamed via any connected video capable device including PCs, digital TVs, tablets and smart mobile devices. Having the fastest, lowest-latency, most sophisticated cloud network in the world enables users to experience rich media content as if they were running it locally.

www.gaikai.com/open-platform

+

Playstation Mobile:

PlayStation®Mobile (PSM) is a new initiative to deliver PlayStation® content on open operating system-based portable devices. This new initiative will allow SCE to deliver the PlayStation® experience to a greater number of users. From the PlayStation®Store, users can purchase a wide variety of content developed by a diverse pool of developers through SCE’s new Developer Program for PlayStation®Mobile, and enjoy that content on PlayStation™Certified devices (PS Certified devices) and the PlayStation®Vita system.

http://www.playstation.com/...

Formula to sell more software:

Android OS+Playstation Mobile+Gaikai+ The ability to sell Playstation Content pretty much on Any Platform= profit!

[bahabeast]

are you slow or something???

there is a rumoured apple tv that will play games and everything rite from 1 DEVICE A TV WITH A REMOTE. i am sayin since sony has this company now sony can make the all in 1 tv that comes with ps controller and all apps.

[TheKayle]

they was just needing someone who understand about cloud gaming..we seen already that these days the experience given by this kidn of service is not comparable to the real br or dvd counter part...(look at onlive) coz the bandwith in most countries isnt enough or most have a bandwith cap that could be a big problem for them
I mean here in italy we have no SUPERMEGA FAST CONNECTION in every city...(i have a 20 mega) but without any cap.....my gf (that now moved to australia) have cable accesso to internet but..with a cap...both r problem but the biggest ONE is the ping...ppl have problem just loading users data in online games (look diablo 3 they needed to buy a new mega server to solve it)
when we talk about to stream an entire game ..we can have it yeah but dont expect something similar to the current ps3 or xbox version...just forget it (if someone tried onlive know what im talking about)

anyway good aquisition but useless before 5 10 years

@bahabeast ...they cant rival samsung in tv industry .they already lose...sony need to understand that ppl who buy a tv ...want technology and D E S I G N....like apple users...
when sony will come back with a monitor tech like it was his TRINITORN (from 1980) that can rival samsung led tv ....when they will accepr the idea to build something BEAUTY to see like samsung and apple...when they will add things like voice recognition and features like samsung is doing...well they can come back in the market...

by now tv market is samsung smart tv > apple tv > ecc ecc ecc..sony is just out

anyway..if we talk about ps vita games....it could still work...but if we talk about next gen......(and i think we done it till now..with ps4 and wii u and x720)..i want my 1080P @ 60fps ...no other laggy things with blurry resolution on my 55" samsung display

this kind of aquisition r done for the future.....i dont think the world is ready for streaming game in hd....look what MS did with the israelian company Primesense ..that is the company behind Kinect ...and imagine Primesense showcased to apple their technology before they did to MS
Now kinect PrimeSense technology isnt from 2011 ..is an old one but ms useing it just from some years......doing a partnership with primesense no one can use their technology....same thing happening now....if someone wanna have cloud gaming or..they must work for it or search for another company thta share their tech with them...so Sony ..is just preventing other companies to do step ahead them in this segment

[NewsForSnowflakes]

When we said we wanted Cloud on our PS3, we meant a FFVII remake.

This will do though.

[DivineAssault]

Is this a joke? are they BSN or for real? why the **** didnt they announce this to the at E3? maybe they wanted to save some for gdc, tgs, etc... Good job sony.. They obviously have some HUGE plans for the future theyre keepin hush hush to ppl

[BuffMordecai]

I don't know about the rest of you, but I hate the idea of cloud gaming. No ownership whatsoever.

[ChronoJoe]

At least GaiKai is a lot better than Onlive but Onlive.

Still don't support cloud gaming though really. It can't work for so games at this time, data transfer isn't instant so there's too much lag.

[supremacy]

I guess this is Sony's Bankai. Gaikai.

Well with Gaikai Sony can easily turn psn into a Steam of their own, making it possible for true cross play. Or even remote play, the playstation consoles will eventually become boxes that like onlive acts as a hub.

If they can improve psn with a more synchronize and faster operating speeds while adding things like voice messaging and cross chat with background auto updates and near like functions across all their platforms, then Sony hqs made the right decision.

All this is thanks in part to Kaz being promoted, this is what happens when the software guys take over.

I can only imagine the endless possibilities. This will make psn like steam or netflix but for gaming ofcourse. This would also spell the decline of onlive, due to Sony's brand name in the gaming industry. The number of exclusives alone will prove that.

[Ninjamonkey82]

Massive boost to an already massive game libary on PS3 and only good knows where they can go with vita. Fantastic.

[Captain Tuttle]

I don't think Gaikai has any actual games though, only demos?

[Roccetarius]

Looks like the first company has fallen, depending what Sony does with this. Too bad the shitty cloud is taking off sooner, rather than later.

No, don't come up with that crap about Steam. PC users started becoming dependant on that ages ago.

[OC_MurphysLaw]

Its a big move for Sony. I am excited to see what it brings to the gaming communtiy in the coming years. I do wonder openly if this is a true sign of an all digital future for the PS4?

[GodHandDee]

Oh and by the way for those who missed it, this means non Playstation games like Witcher 2 are coming to Playstation

BOOM

[caboose32]

There actually arent any games on Gaikai though.... only demos...

[GodHandDee]

And you think sony is buying them out just for demos? I'm talking about the future here, not today. Sony is taking them in for their tech and to lay the foundation. The possibilities are endless

[Merrill]

How is this topic only 480 degrees with a 100 comments?

[Tacklebait]

This will be a disaster at launch. I for see alot of growing pains. Just look at diablo 3 and its servers and this is way more complicated then that.

[gdguide]

Hmmmmmm..... I wonder if the PS4 will have PS+ have the beefed up versions of games. That tagline better with Kinect will be trumped with "better with PS+". They could always have the better version of games. But I would put that edge on plus and make it something they can make more money off of.

[NIRVANArazor]

The only thing I don't like about cloud gaming is that I don't get anything I don"t feel like I bought something. Also how do Special Edition work?? I would just feel weird buying the GTA after V and having all my Gta game next to each other but not 6 or whatever. It would feel incomplete that's all i'm saying.

[TronEOL]

Wow. Smart move, Sony. I'm not sure if we'll see this take effect with Playstation (although it most likely will, since it gives users tons of ways to play, or demo games from the PSStore, even PS3 users would be able to demo PS4 games), but it certainly would help all their other products.

They'd essentially be able to allow people to play Playstation games across all Sony's platforms. So you could literally do what they advertised the Vita and PS3 to be able to do. Except all it would take is to log into SEN, and continue your save, rather than transfer anything. And that could be on Sony Smartphones, TV's, Laptops, etc.

I'm very, very curious to see what they plan on doing with this.

[turnerdc]

Great news! This should put a pretty big spotlight on cloud gaming. I've been using it for almost 2 years now with OnLive and absolutely love the service. Granted while this acquisition isn't solely focused on OnLive, however, OnLive is part of the bigger picture!

[SpinalRemains138]

Long as the man on screen jumps as soon as I hit the button, I'm down.

Is that possible though? Streaming a game can't possibly have the same pkay control as reading a disc or playing an installed game. It's not physically possible.

If the PS4 has no disc tray I won't buy it.
I'm pretty sure it will be a normal console with the GaiKai on the XMB or whatever they implement in their next GUI. Streaming only would basically suck balls, guys.

[MYSTERIO360]

If we could enter a barcode from the back of our already owned ps2 games into the online service to get our physical discs streamed online for free that would be cool. Although i dont think that will happen.

[Neo-Axl]

I've had a hard day man.. This bit of news has really turned my day around :D Can somebody tell me the likely benefits of this service for everything linking the PS3 too PC, Vita? Would be greatly appreciated, Peace!

[DontBanMeBro]

Sony wins again! Wonder what the Vita haters and PC geeks are gonna say when. We're playing Playstation games on every device u can imagine, as well as their beloved PC games. I was disappointed at E3 but hey I guess better late than never!

But where does OnLive go from here??

[UConcord11]

All I'm wondering is when this'll be implemented into my ps3. I pray the vita is involved somehow also.

[neutralgamer19]

Once again in the forefront of technology. I'm so happy by this news bcus possibilities are endless. You have dumb pessimists talking garbage about what this means in a negative way. Sony has rarely disappointed me in terms of gaming and tech so I havefaith Sony will once again innovate in gaming and give me years of more fun with this acquisition.

[Godz Kastro]

I dont own a PS3 but this is good news for those who do... Nice move Sony. MS your turn to buy Onlive as the next gen war is starting to shape itself.

[LOL_WUT]

Hmm I don't know what to think the idea sounds cool but i'm not sure if I understand it correctly. I think they should implement this to the PS4 and not Ps3, if it's the latter then that would make the PS4 useless.

[Saleem101]

This deal is for ps4 online setup party chat, webchat, games and more features... Think about xbox live but better...

[kingPoS]

The way I see it Playstation, PC/Mac, & mobile users all can benefit from this.
Six years ago built in wifi was unheard in a dedicated Bluray player, now they stream video, audio &.....

[smashcrashbash]

Never understand people going on about you just 'renting' the games with PSN Plus. When you get subscriptions to things like Netflix what happens when you don't renew it can you still watch the unlimited movies that you downloaded? So how is that any different then how Sony does it?

[Double_O_Revan]

Maybe PS3 games purchased on PSN can stream now instead of downloading 20gb files to the HD. That would be nice.

[Elvis]

Cool.

[Cajun Chicken]

Crikey. So is Dave Perry still involved? Dave Perry is a very good asset.

[jalen247]

I see the PS4 as a hybrid console. PS5 will be fully cloud based...no optical drive...no hard drive...Or Sony may opt out of PS5 altogether by asking consumers to purchase one of their electronic devices or competitor devices(Bravia, Vaio, Mobile phone, etc) which the consumer may already own.

PS4 will be built with cloud gaming in mind. It will also have a Blu-ray drive and Hard drive since internet broadband is not globally available at high speeds.

Sony has just through the first left hook to Nintendo,Microsoft, and apple.

Lets see how the competition responds.

[archemides518]

there will be no ps5, everything needed for cloud will be on ps4...if not already on ps3. i mean come on any crap computer that can load a video stream can already play games on gaikai if the internet speed is decent (at least 3mbps). but sony might put out a cheapo streaming box tho like onlive when the time comes.

[DC1980]

Daniel Bryan's reaction after hearing the news

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[blackdream]

This tech is a pipe dream that is only good for music storage movies. I have tried out the tech on their official site and it laggs terriblely. I'm on 50mbs. Now think the average bandwidth speed is 3mbs in the us how in the hell will this work. The single player mission are laggy, the resolution is worse frames per second are all over the place. I want this to work but our infrastructure in the USA isn't fast enough for such tech. Just wish the internet service providers would just upgrade their speeds already and stop milking us for money. Until then guys stick to your consoles and gaming rigs they are still superior. Power to the gamers bye.

[araman]

This is great until you consider one thing, at least in the US. All signs point to internet costing MORE for LESS as time goes on. More stringent data caps are coming...

[archemides518]

yeaaaaaaaaa gaikai 4 me

none 4 u

[SSKILLZ]

Sony has big plans :)

[cliffyboy21]

for that much they must be bringing it to the ps4 also cuz just to spend that much on the ps3 when the ps4's around the corner would be kind of crazy