We recently received a very interesting tip from Buck Crouch revealing some potential asset theft from the house of PlayStation. Sony is selling some premium themes for the PS3, in association with Smobile and Disruptive Media Publishers, which can be used to spruce up the way your console looks onscreen:
We have linked up with a few partners, Smobile & Disruptive Media Publishers, to distribute premium themes from PlayStation Network. They have content offerings that range in type from NCAA College licenses to beauties on the beach to original cartoons and anime. These themes were created specifically for the PS3 and have special backgrounds, XMB icons and, in some cases, sounds.
That's fair enough, right? Microsoft charges you for dashboard themes that aren't even as thematic as what Sony is offering. However, all may not be kosher. If you check out the pictured elf girl theme, you may just notice that the XMB icons are converted World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade logos!
The icons have been very crudely constructed. The World of Warcraft title is removed, but where it's supposed to say Burning Crusade, all the artist did was take out "Crusade" and mirror the image to save time. Incredibly shoddy behavior.
Of course, this is more the fault of an unscrupulous artist than Sony itself, but the company really ought to keep a lid on this stuff. I think this one will need a little retooling before Sony has the nerve to charge for it, regardless of how sexy that elf is.
LAUNCH GALLERY (3 IMAGES)
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Contest:
3:01 PM on 10.13.2008
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But that is really, really bad. What on earth would possess you to take the logo of what is probably the most popular game ever and use it in the work you are selling through a huge company?
The elf isn't even that hot.
There, you said it.
Are these things even released yet?
Sony needs to be careful who's IP stuff they put for sale.
Careful there sterling, first bats, now elves, soon you'll be going for tiger-women, and then wearing fursuits, and then all it lost
Is there any depth of evil that this corporation wouldn't sink to?
PS: Have you picked up your PS3 yet?
No one at Sony makes these themes, Sony only contributes by distributing them on PSN which nets them a percentage of the profits.
I believe Sony is the company that is hosting their themes in their online store, and as such gets a cut of profit from it. And since they're profiting off of copyright infringement, they're probably going to get caught up in this mess too.
I give my readers only what they want.
Technically, Sony isn't charging for it. The price is reflective of what the third party wants to charge, Sony is just providing the means in which to distribute the item.
Also, most of the Premium Themes are also available on the Xbox 360 for a price (sans XMB of course). I know the ones from DMP are, not sure about SMobile.
This has to be joke..
Ha, you'll try anything.
It's Sony's store, Sony is doing the charging. It's up to Sony to pull the product. Don't take a mile from the inch you're given, son.
I'm guessing it's Sony that decides how much everything costs regardless of how much development work went into something. You're a much more intelligent man that I will ever be. I'm sure Sony is forcing Penny Arcade Episode 1 to be $19.99 in cost, just like it was on XBLA. Has absolutely nothing to do with the developers looking to price the game to recoup costs at all, even if they came to them with a want to price it at $9.99, Sony is forcing them to price it at $19.99.
See where I'm going with this?
Can we have a link to a full screen or 100% image please, so my eyes do not bleed?
Oh, unless you think Sony should continue to sell it.
**date = data -- oh well.
Whether or not Sony or the other companies did this is irrelevant to the point that Sony stands to profit from sales of this theme. More than likely, Sony didn't know. Now they do and it's up to them to pull the theme and offer refunds.
then he's saying that they shouldn't start selling it. it's pretty logical as far as i (and most other people) are concerned. you don't host copied images if you know about them, and just by the fact that this article exists, sony must know about them (seeing as how i'm sure they care about their image on videogame blogs and websites). unless they're paying blizzard for the theme, they have no right to put it up there.