104w ago - Sony Network Entertainment Marketing Coordinator Joey Payne has announced today that SNE is now offering 180 Days of Q Music Unlimited for free on the PS3 entertainment system!

To quote: You are in for a treat: starting today for a limited time, eligible PlayStation 3 owners* can try out a free 180-day Basic subscription of Music Unlimited for free!

That means that you have 6 months to check out the service and listen to 7 million tracks before you decide to sign up for a full subscription.

The Basic service offers an ad-free internet radio style experience with access to dozens of music channels by genre, rap, rock, etc., era, 2000s, 1990s, etc. and mood for example energetic, mellow, morning and many more.

You can personalize the channels by rating played songs as "like" or "dislike" so the music channels become more tailored to your musical preferences.

By using the MusicSync feature (this can only be used via the Q Music Unlimited PC interface) you do not have to go through the lengthy process of uploading your songs to the cloud which you have to do on other services.

To access the 180 day Basic Service free trial, log on to your PlayStation 3 system and click on the Music Unlimited service below...

149w ago - PlayStation Network Executive Producer Kevin Furuichi has shared a video alongside news today of a PSN casting contest for The Tester Season 2.

To quote: We hope you've had a chance to check out all the casting video submission we've received for Season 2 of The Tester.

We're down to the Top 100 and there's only 5 more days of voting until we make the cut to the Top 10.

So, get busy and vote for your favorites before the deadline this Friday at 11:59:59 PM EST.

Thanks again to everybody who's participating either as a contender or a fan with your votes, comments, and interest in The Tester Season 2.

And make sure to check out thetester.com next week to see who's in the Top 10.

161w ago - Today Gamasutra.com (linked above) have posted an extensive interview with Sony Computer Entertainment of America's Rob Dyer, who stated that SCEA is working on implementing code to make new PSP games unhackable for up to 60 days from release.

This news comes just months after Sony's recent effort to combat PlayStation Portable piracy through online registration requirements.

To quote: "A lot of the stuff that will be announced at E3 we're very excited about, because they are huge titles. And we also believe that there's a way that you will be able to, not stop, but slow down the piracy in the first 30 to 60 days from a tech perspective.

There's some code that you can embed that we've been helping developers implement in order to get people at least to see a 60-day shelf life before it gets hacked and it shows up on BitTorrent.

That's been the biggest problem, no question about it. It's become a very difficult proposition to be profitable, given the piracy right now. And the fact that the category shrunk inside of retail."

175w ago - European Product Manager Alex Pavey has shared a recap today on Four Days: The Heavy Rain PS3 Online Experience, as follows:

Last week saw the second chapter of Four Days: The Heavy Rain Online Experience unfold.

The investigation took a dark turn, as participants took part in a criminal investigation - handling an emergency call, investigating crime scene evidence, questioning a well-meaning but unreliable witness, and ultimately submitting data to the Bureau for further analysis.

At the end of the week, all those who submitted the correct evidence pack from the crime scene were given an exclusive voucher code to download the Heavy Rain playable demo from the PlayStation Store. The demo will not be made generally available until this Thursday, 11th February - so there's still time for you to get involved and get hold of the demo early.

Head over to www.HeavyRain.com to register, and then take a look at the active community over on the Facebook Fanpage if you need any hints or help.

The final stage of the investigation will take place this week - you've been seconded to work with the Bureau, helping them assess...

176w ago - As a follow-up to last week's article, today European Product Manager Alex Pavey has shared a glimpse into the Heavy Rain Online Experience, previously on Four Days, Part 1.

To quote: Four Days: The Heavy Rain Online Experience kicked off last week, and it's been great to watch thousands of you following the early stages of the investigation.

A trail of clues led participants across the net, and they witnessed the disturbed and suspicious ranting of someone who may prove to be a potential suspect.

Some participants also discovered that their credentials gave them exclusive access to a parallel investigation taking place in PlayStation Home...

This week is where the real work begins. A crime has taken place, and you will be tasked with supporting the investigation. Analyse the crime-scene - question an eyewitness - assess the evidence. The consequences will be great, but the rewards may be even greater.

If you haven't registered yet, then head over to HeavyRainPS3.com to sign-up (you'll also get an exclusive PlayStation Home t-shirt when you do).

Four Days: The Heavy...