I am pleased to notice Sony are feeling the pinch after their recent episodes with consumer non-friendly trojans.
http://www.engadget.com/2006/02/16/sony-kills-walkman-bean-after-failure-to-sprout/Sony's Walkman Bean is now about to fade into history, after just six months on the market. While the rapid demise of the Bean is sure to be blamed on the fierce competition in the digital audio market, where being a distant second-place to Apple earns a company bragging rights, the product had its own share of failings, including Sony's SonicStage software, clunky controls, and the lack of PlaysForSure support.
In fact, that last point might have automatically doomed the Bean, given that the market is rapidly separating into two camps: those that support iTunes (the iPod and a handful of phones) and those that support PlaysForSure (everyone else). Sony's product didn't fit into either camp -- opting, instead for integration with the company's proprietary Connect service
Looks didnt win out over functionality then ?
Another lemon in the wind is this one
http://www.engadget.com/2006/02/16/breaking-news-sonys-umds-arent-selling-well/Please, just don't act all surprised that the UMD isn't taking, and that studio after studio is cutting back UMD releases, according to Variety; Warner's nixing six future UMD titles, stating they're "disappointed with consumer demand [in UMD] at this time." Virgin, UMD's biggest buyer to date, isn't making more room for new UMDs, either, stating "the overall impact of the format has still been nominal." You guys want to know why though? Here's some free market advice: UMD only plays in one device (the PSP), and the format is so closed consumers can't even buy recordable UMDs (and never will be able to), let alone play them in other devices. Where's the "universal" in this media disc?
I see I,m not the only person who warns folks not to buy into a format controlled by one company, to do so is to allow your wallet/purse to be milked dry as the media costs to keep it rolling will only spiral.
