Last night, Sony Computer Entertainment issued the following press release:

SONY AND SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT ANNOUNCE FULL RESTORATION OF PLAYSTATION®NETWORK SERVICES Tokyo, May 31, 2011 – Sony Corporation and Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) announced today that Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI, the company) will fully restore all PlayStation®Network services in the Americas, Europe/PAL territories and Asia, excluding Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea by the end of this week.

The company will also resume Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity™ for PlayStation®3 (PS3®), PSP® (PlayStation®Portable), VAIO and other PCs. Details for Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea as well as the remaining services on Qriocity will be announced as they become available.

The company implemented considerable security enhancements to the network infrastructure, as well as conducted testing of the payment process and commerce functions. The first phase of PlayStation Network and Qriocity restoration began on May 15 in the Americas and Europe/PAL territories, followed by Japan and Asian countries and regions on May 28, when the company brought partial services back online. With this partial restoration users were able to access to some of the services such as online game play, account management, friend lists and chat functionality were restored. The full restoration of PlayStation Network as well as part of services to become available on Qriocity will include:

• Full functionality on PlayStation®Store
• In-game commerce
• Ability to redeem vouchers and codes
• Full functionality on Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity for PS3, PSP, VAIO and other PCs
• Full functionality on Media Go

Customers will be able to purchase and download games and video content from the PlayStation®Store on PS3 or PSP. In addition, consumers will have full access to Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity through PS3, PSP, VAIO and other PC’s. Service restoration of Video on Demand powered by Qriocity™ and Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity for a variety of network-enabled Sony devices will be announced later.

“We have been conducting additional testing and further security verification of our commerce functions in order to bring the PlayStation Network completely back online so that our fans can again enjoy the first class entertainment experience they have come to love,” said Kazuo Hirai, Executive Deputy President, Sony Corporation. “We appreciate the patience and support shown during this time.”

The company will be offering customers a “Welcome Back” package of services and premium content to all registered PlayStation Network* and Qriocity account services. The details of this program will continue to be detailed regionally.

* Only available for those countries with access to PlayStation®Store.

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We have received a very small number of customer support questions about PS3s overheating or shutting down while playing L.A. Noire. At this time, Rockstar Games and Sony can confirm that neither L.A. Noire or firmware update 3.61 are causing the PS3 hardware to overheat. We are both committed to working hard to find solutions to this and any issues that may arise. If you are experiencing any issues with L.A. Noire or your PS3 hardware, please contact technical support using any of the means provided below:

Rockstar Support: www.rockstargames.com/support
Rockstar Support on Twitter: twitter.com/RockstarSupport

Playstation 3 Support EU: http://eu.playstation.com

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We temporarily took down the PSN and Qriocity password reset page. Contrary to some reports, there was no hack involved. In the process of resetting of passwords there was a URL exploit that we have subsequently fixed.

Consumers who haven’t reset their passwords for PSN are still encouraged to do so directly on their PS3. Otherwise, they can continue to do so via the website as soon as we bring that site back up.

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Last week we informed you that we would be liaising with providers of identity theft protection plans following the malicious attack on PlayStation Network throughout our region. We are now in a position to provide you with actual details of the programme for current PlayStation Network and Qriocity consumers in UK, France, Spain, Italy and Germany.

As I have explained previously, identifying such programmes for the many countries within the SCEE region is a very complicated process. Each country has a different way of handling identity theft; whilst some offer relatively sophisticated services, others may not. Therefore, we must stress that this is an ongoing process which will see new identity theft protection programmes identified where possible.

That said, we are pleased to advise that Affinion International Limited, a leader in identity protection products in Europe, will be offering a comprehensive service that covers a significant proportion of PSN users free of charge for the first 12 months.

Affinion International Limited will be offering the following identity theft protection service and insurance through their fraud protect programme for the UK, France, Spain, Italy and Germany.

The fraud protect proposition cover three key areas:*

Personal Information protection

• Monitoring and Alerting Service
• Personal Information Protection Software

Help / Assistance and guidance

• Dedicated helpline
• Victim of Fraud support

Financial Protection

• Insurance that covers the expenses incurred in identity restoration following identity fraud
• Card Monitoring and Alerting Service

We are still working to identify similar services for those countries not covered by this offering, and this will depend on reputable businesses offering appropriate services. As such, we promise to keep you updated on progress right here on PlayStation.Blog.

We will provide you with information on how to contact Affinion shortly about this service.

Please note that PSN customers under the age of 18 are advised to consult their parent or guardian.

*For information as to the terms and conditions of Affinion International Limited’s programme please visit:

UK – www.fraudprotect.co.uk
France – www.fraudprotect.fr
Italy – www.fraudprotect.it
Germany – www.fraudprotect.de
Spain – www.fraudprotect.es

* For eligibility for fraud protect consumers must be 18+ and be an account holder on 20 April 2011.

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Now that certain PSN services have been restored and you’re once again enjoying online gaming, it seems a good time to confirm what is being offered as part of the Welcome Back programme.

Once we restore PlayStation Store, which will be just a little while longer, you will have the opportunity to claim your Welcome Back gifts. Please note that the Welcome Back programme is only available for those countries with access to PlayStation Store*.

All existing PlayStation Network members will be able to access the following from PlayStation Store*:

Two PS3 games from the following list:

• LittleBigPlanet
• Infamous*
• Wipeout HD/Fury
• Ratchet and Clank: Quest for Booty
• Dead Nation*

For those with PSP accounts, you will also be eligible to download two PSP games from the following list:

• LittleBigPlanet PSP
• ModNation PSP
• Pursuit Force
• Killzone Liberation*

- 30 days free PlayStation Plus membership for non PS Plus subscribers*

- Existing PlayStation Plus subscribers will be given 60 days free subscription.

- For existing Music Unlimited subscribers, you will be given 30 days free subscription.

- We are working on a Welcome Back offer in PlayStation Home and will share that when it is confirmed.

I would like to thank all of the developers and publishers involved in this programme for their support in making this happen. We certainly couldn’t have done it without you.

You will be able to access this content once PlayStation Store comes back online and we are doing everything we can to make that happen as soon as possible.

Thank you for your support and keep checking back on the blog for more information.

1. For eligibility for the welcome back programme consumers must be an account holder on 20 April 2011. Specific details about these offers and eligibility requirements will be posted as the services go live. All existing PSN registrants have 30 days from when the welcome back programme goes live to redeem their content.
2. For the German market, InFamous and Dead Nation will be replace with Super Stardust HD and Hustle Kings in the selection of PS3 games.
3. For the German market, Pursuit Force and Killzone Liberation will be replaced with Everybody’s Golf 2 and Buzz Junior Jungle Party in the selection of PSP games. Killzone Liberation will not offer online gameplay functionality.
4. Access to the 30 days free PS Plus subscription is only available for those countries where PS Plus is offered. You will have access to the PS Plus content planned for May for 30 days. Access to the free games and exclusive features finishes at the end of the 30-day subscription period. Anything you buy with exclusive discounts, dynamic themes and premium avatars are yours to keep forever.

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