Sony strikes Taiwan dev deal

Sony has struck a deal with a consortium of Asian game developers to bolster the platform holder’s array of PSP and PS3 titles.

Sony Computer Entertainment Asia signed the deal with six developers, such as Taiwanese groups XPEC Entertainment and Yeck Entertainment.

SCE Asia has also opened up its proprietary PlayStation platform to Taiwanese group SOGA Interactive – the team currently developing Stephen Chow’s-Kung Fu Hustle, scheduled to be released this winter.

Also signed up in the deal is Bulgarian group Intersev International, as well as telephone operators Tatung InfoComm and Intersev International.

This joint effort will see the Taiwanese government subsidise development costs by some 40 per cent.

It is implied, though not confirmed, that the companies will be working on digital content for both the PS3 and PSPgo.

SCEA president Tetsuhiko Yasuda focused on the future of the sector when announcing the deal.

“A complete home entertainment vision will eventually allow all Sony products such as high-definition TVs, handsets, navigation systems and other devices to ‘talk’ to each other and deliver all forms of digital content,” he said.

Taiwan’s Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Hwang Jung-chiou added that “the establishment of this cross-national research and development channel is the result of the ministry’s hard work to transform Taiwan into a world class digital content software provider country, not just a hardware manufacturing hub.”