Cynical Sony to halt third-party Memory Card production
Now that early issues are resolved, SCE revokes lucrative PS2 licensing
Sony Computer Entertainment of America has announced that it will not be renewing any licenses to companies producing third-party PlayStation 2 memory cards in the American region.
The decision will affect all companies currently producing the peripherals, especially Mad Catz, the producer of the best-selling third-party unit. The move is a fairly cynical one by Sony. It encountered terminal corruption problems with its initial run of first-party cards and demand went through the roof. SCE licensed the technology to other companies to make up the shortfall. Now that it has bottomed the problems, all licenses in America have been revoked.
"While our existing license for the North American market has expired, we continue to negotiate with SCEA for a renewal of the license and are hopeful that we will obtain a new agreement in the first quarter of calendar 2002,” Said Mad Catz president Darren Richardson. “Due to the sale of products for the newly launched systems, Xbox and GameCube, exceeding expectations, coupled with the continued strength of PlayStation 2, we expect that we are still on target to achieve our previously announced sales estimate of $80 million for FY 2002."
We expect Mr Richardson’s pleasant tone to change considerably if Sony refuses to extend the contract.
The decision will affect all companies currently producing the peripherals, especially Mad Catz, the producer of the best-selling third-party unit. The move is a fairly cynical one by Sony. It encountered terminal corruption problems with its initial run of first-party cards and demand went through the roof. SCE licensed the technology to other companies to make up the shortfall. Now that it has bottomed the problems, all licenses in America have been revoked.
"While our existing license for the North American market has expired, we continue to negotiate with SCEA for a renewal of the license and are hopeful that we will obtain a new agreement in the first quarter of calendar 2002,” Said Mad Catz president Darren Richardson. “Due to the sale of products for the newly launched systems, Xbox and GameCube, exceeding expectations, coupled with the continued strength of PlayStation 2, we expect that we are still on target to achieve our previously announced sales estimate of $80 million for FY 2002."
We expect Mr Richardson’s pleasant tone to change considerably if Sony refuses to extend the contract.
Companies:
SCEA
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