Sony has big plans for the PlayStation Network, and those plans don't necessarily include the PlayStation 3. Saying that they are "evolving the PlayStation 3 into a platform for web services," Sony CEO Howard Stringer talked about going from a "closed system" to an open one.
"A lot of people thought Sony's content download service was doomed, but it's in a pretty good place right now in the form of the PlayStation Network, available to PS3 users for network gaming, video, etc. The DRM is based on Marlin, an open scheme developed by consumer electronics companies and other companies," Stringer told Nikkei Electronics Asia (via Edge).

"What does all this mean? Very simply, it means that Sony has begun the transition from a closed system to an open one."

That means expanding the PlayStation Network to hardware other than the PS3, because the number of PS3 units sold puts a limit on the scale of the network possible," Stringer said

"Sony has a vertical structure for each product line, an organisational structure that resists change, so it will take time to achieve this network growth. However, a large number of employees share my opinion on this."

Sony sees "a diverse range of electronics" tapping into the Internet in the near future. The electronics giant wants to figure out how to tap into the market and figure out what customers want.

"We have to think about what we need to do to make our customers - the king - like our products. I think the key to this lies in watching our customers," Stringer said.

"If a Sony employee were to ask me what a reasonable market price might be for distributing video to the home, I would tell him, "Don't listen to me; watch our customers."