In a press conference tonight, Sony has just announced that the PlayStation Network and its Qriocity services will be back up starting next week. The PSN has been down for over a week now, ever since Sony decided to temporarily disable it to prevent further external intrusions and to patch things up on the network.
Many people have been upset over not being able to use the PSN service and have been complaining online on forums and blogs, demanding that Sony compensate for the downtime. Well it sure looks like Sony has heard the community and will be rewarding PSN users with a “Welcome Back” program.
They announced that the “Welcome Back” program will be for users all over the world – all existing PlayStation Network users will get 30 days of PlayStation Plus for free, while existing PlayStation Plus members will get 30 days of additional service for free as well. All users will be able to download selected PlayStation entertainment content for free as well. Music Unlimited subscribers will also receive 30 days of free service.
Sony has also mentioned that they’ve increased the levels of security for the network. They will be working with the FBI to track down the attackers who hit their network. When the PlayStation Network goes live again next week, users will have to download a firmware update, as well as create a new login password.
Granted, Sony didn’t really have to do anything besides restore the service and give users back the days that they missed, but upgrading everyone and giving them a month free shows that that the company wants to make it up to the consumers for the network’s downtime. As a user, how do you feel about the “Welcome Back” program? Is it enough to compensate for the supposedly leaked credit card info and service outage?
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