DS is no competition for PSP, says Sony

Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida has said the company doesn't see the DS as a direct rival for the PSP - despite the fact they're both handheld machines for playing computer games on.

"We've always thought that the PSP as a platform is standing on its own - there's no direct competition. Some people think that the DS is its rival simply because it's portable, but the positioning and the main user base are totally different," he told GamesIndustry.biz.

"It's just been a question of how to take the best out of the platform and deliver it to consumers, so they understand that they can use it every day for many things. So I think we're still early on the curve."

Yoshida went on to admit there have been issues with a lack of third-party software, but said it's all set to change in the longer term. "Like when we started with PlayStation One, with videogames as being a toy, and looking at the individual countries when it comes to introducing new aspects to the platform - in our minds we're doing the same sort of thing with the PSP since 2005," he observed.

"It's too early to make judgements - we know there's a lot more that we can do, and with the massive growth of the industry we understand that third party publishers have so many choices, many more than they have resources. Sometimes we struggle to convince them to put more resources into the PSP.

"But when they really focus on what they can do with the platform, there are still lots of good business opportunities that are still viable, and will continue to be, because there are no competing platforms."

For more from Yoshida, read the full interview.