Instead, Sony is building the new PlayStation on top of a traditional PC architecture, and in doing so, game creators will have an easier time developing games.
Ultimately, both machines are going to be very similar to one another since both Microsoft and Sony are building what amounts to cheap, mass-produced gaming PCs with simple user interfaces.
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The firm has also offloaded its "Sony City Osaki" building in Tokyo.
Microsoft was interested and contracted with IBM for their own chip, to be built around the core that IBM was still building with Sony.
Intel sells its processors to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and original design manufacturers (ODMs) such as Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Toshiba and Sony, and individuals building custom PCs.
Forrester analyst James McQuivey said Sony is missing the point by building what amounts to an upgraded PS3.
But celebrating these features seems dated at this point, as Sony and Microsoft ushered in HD (and Sony 3D) long ago, building up online entertainment networks far more advanced than what Wii U is introducing.
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"Sony Pictures leads the industry in building a library of new releases and restored classics mastered in 4K, so it is both exciting and appropriate that we can provide the first 4K movies that consumers will be able to experience in their homes, " said Chris Cookson, president, Sony Pictures Technologies.
Sony sold its U.S. headquarters building on New York's Madison Avenue in January, as well as other buildings in Tokyo.
As well as its US regional headquarters, Sony has also indicated its willingness to sell the building housing its television business in Tokyo.
BBC: Sony sells Manhattan headquarters skyscraper for $1.1bn
Like Sony, which has spent more than four years building EverQuest II, set for a November debut, Cryptic is designing another game, called City of Villains, while the heroes are hot.
The entertainment industry didn't exactly welcome VCRs when they first appeared, either, taking Sony (SNE) to the Supreme Court for building machines that facilitated copyright infringement on a massive scale.
Building better devices - even connecting better devices - doesn't do nearly as much as building digital experiences that happen to be tied to Sony devices.
As well as the data, they are also building up a significant amount of karma from the modding and hacking community that their Sony phones will be tools they can adapt into whatever they want.
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That means that Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people ) is building consumer electronics devices (most spectacularly, the Xbox videogame console), while Sony (nyse: SNE - news - people ) is working on an operating system.
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