Sony will load its PlayStation 2 game boxes with the Internet-friendly Java software platform later this year, tying it closer to the Web.
Console makers Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo are fighting tooth and nail to attract games players, rolling out new boxes with add-ons which give much of the versatility of an Internet-ready computer.
"(Sony) aims to create a new world of entertainment by merging games with communication," Shinichi Okamoto, senior vice president and chief technology officer of Sony Computer Entertainment said in a statement.
Sun Microsystems developed Java as a platform that would run on top of many operating systems, allowing developers to write one piece of software that could work on a number of machines with minimal change. Chief Scientist John Gage said the next wave for game makers would be to connect players over the Web, a plan that Sony expects to put into effect this fall when it releases the first round of online PlayStation games.
"I think they all realise that the dynamo of advance in this arena will be the Internet," Gage said on the sidelines of Sun's JavaOne convention.
Sony has sold more than 10 million PlayStation 2s, but it will soon face new console challenges, including Nintendo's GameCube, which will launch in Japan in September, and Microsoft's Xbox, slated for November release.
PlayStation 2s will be equipped with Java by year end, allowing users with the right add-ons to download Java applications from the Internet and communicate with Java enabled devices, from other players on the Internet to cell phones, Sony said.
Sony has already announced other alliances that would let the PlayStation 2 be used for email and to receive audio and video over the Net.
