Sony 'not worried' by iPod Video

Sony Computer Entertainment's Chief Executive Producer Phil Harrison says the company is "not worried" by Apple's decision to launch a video-enabled version of its iPod MP3 player.

PlayStation Portable is the pre-eminent portable video device in the world at the moment, Harrison told BBC TV last night following Apple's launch.

Cradling a black PSP in his hands, Harrison said that millions of people around the world were already enjoying the benefits of the PSP's video playback functions. When asked if he was worried about iPod with video, Harrison smiled and said, "No, we're not worried".

iPod doesn't have any game support, but thanks to the features it now shares in common with PSP - namely playback of video and music downloaded to the device from a PC - it's likely to be considered a serious competitor to Sony's shiny black and white niche from now on.

Sony may be putting on a brave face for the cameras, but it's bound to be slightly concerned - along with the new iPod, Apple last night declared that it had sold more than 28 million iPods since 2001.

Amusingly, Sony may receive a very slight short-term boost in its battle to fight off competition in this sector from an unexpected - Microsoft's Xbox 360, currently rolling off production lines in Asia, ships with support for media playback direct from current iPod models and PSP, but given the timing of Apple's announcement it's conceivable that it'll be a little while before the console can stream video stored on the new iPod.