As of this writing, PS3 firmware update 4.45 has been taken down from the site and Sony Computer Entertainment has said publicly that they are currently fixing the problem. Users have been advised not to update their PS3s until further notice.

Yesterday it was revealed that Microsoft planned to hold the line on pricing for retail game discs for Xbox One to current levels at right around $60. Today we learn that Sony will use the same price point for PlayStation 4 retail game discs.

Sony has confirmed with VideoGamer.com that auto-updates, social features and some entertainment on the PlayStation 4 will not be behind a pay-wall. In confirming this news Sony says that it is "trying to be as balanced and as fair as we possibly can." TV and online movie services will also continue to be free to all PS4 users.

If you decide to play certain free-to-play MMO-style games on the PlayStation 4 you may not need to have a PlayStation Plus subscription. According to Sony Online Entertainment, publishers of those games can decide whether or not they will make Plus a requirement. SOE is developing two of its current properties for play on PS4 - PlanetSide 2 and DC Universe Online - and both of them do not need a Plus membership in order to play.

Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida believes that the PlayStation 4 will have a lifespan of over ten years, just like previous PlayStation family home consoles. Speaking with CVG, Yoshida said with PS4 there is room for growth should games start to exceed the 8GB of RAM, and that Sony plans to support the console for at least 10.

Sony's message on used games and DRM has been pretty consistent company wide during E3, which is something of a miracle, because when you get too many executives out in the wilds talking to the press, usually one or two of them inserts a foot into an open mouth. The latest to say something that gamers will appreciate is SCE Europe boss Jim Ryan.

The good news keeps rolling in from Sony, it seems.

In a tweet responding to a question by games journalist Daniel Feit Sony Computer Entertainment's Brad Douglas said that SCEI has informed him that the PlayStation 4 would not be region locked. If true, that means that a consumer can purchase a game in Europe or Japan and play it in his North American-purchased PS4 (and vice-versa).

While some may believe that Sony somehow decided at the eleventh hour on its pricing and policy on used games and connectivity, Sony VP of Worldwide Studios Scott Rohde told Polygon in an interview earlier Monday night that the company hadn't changed any opinions or strategies in response to Microsoft's Xbox One plans.

If Sony's jabs at Microsoft at its E3 2013 press conference don't irritate executives in Redmond, Washington tonight then this hilarious video from Sony will. In it, two Sony Computer Entertainment executives demonstrate how you share games on the PlayStation 4 in one simple step. Sharing on the Xbox One is a bit more complicated...

Ouch.

Sony put to bed a lot of questions this evening at its E3 Expo 2013 press conference that Microsoft stumbled with, fumbled and mangled last month. While Microsoft said it was up to publishers whether or not gamers could sell, trade, or loan their Xbox One games out, Sony threw out a phrase that resonated with gamers tonight: "True Consumer Ownership." Sony promised no restrictions on used games or rentals, loaning games out to friends, selling them, etc. This is what consumers had hoped to hear from Sony and the company did not disappoint them.

E3!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm excited?  Are you excited?  Oh man, it's like Christmas in June!

I don't know about you but I'm taking a vacation day on Monday, June 10 so I can stay home and watch all the conferences.  Yes, I'm that big a video game dork.

Here's the show schedule for June 10th (all times PST):

While Xbox 360 fans fret over possible used game licensing fees and a console that may or may not require you to always be connected with Xbox One, Sony fans have taken to twitter to bombard Sony executives. Recently fans took to Twitter to urge Sony not to use those same techniques for the upcoming PlayStation 4 console.

Using the hashtags #PS4NoDRM and #PS4USEDGAMES, consumers have sent messages to Sony executives pleading with them not to implement any kind of usage restrictions on the PS4.

Bloomberg is reporting that, under pressure from its shareholders, Sony executives and board members have decided to discuss billionaire Daniel Loeb’s proposal for an initial public offering of its entertainment business. Loeb's firm Third Point owns a fair share of Sony stock, giving him some influence over what Sony does.

An interesting story in the New York Times (as unearthed by Develop) reveals that a hedge fund manager that controls billions in investment in Sony has suggested that the company break up parts of the company.

The Columbus Dispatch reports that 23-year-old Todd M. Miller has been sentenced to one year of house arrest for his part in the 2008 security breach of Sony's PlayStation Network. Miller wasn't convicted on charges directly related to the hacking, but for destroying computers the FBI was interested in investigating related to the crime. Miller was sentenced last week.

While Microsoft has earned some good will from the game community this week after a memo revealing that the next Xbox will not require an online connection all the time in order to work, Sony is elbowing its way into the debate by saying that they never considered such an option because most of the world doesn't have perfect internet.

One of Sony's highlighted features when it announced the PlayStation 4 earlier this year is the ability for users to share video and screenshots from games they are playing with their friends, but now Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida says that the inclusion of those features in PS4 games are entirely under the control of the developers who make the games. Developers could opt not to include those features at all or could limit their functionality if they so choose.

Last July South Korea began enforcing a law that would keep teens under the age of 16 from playing games during a six hour block at night. The law was dubbed the "Shutdown Law" and promised strict enforcement and punishment for places where teens go to play online whether that be a cyber cafe or using online services such as the PlayStation Network or Xbox Live.

According to this Bloomberg report Sony executives have agreed to forgo salary bonuses for the second year in a row following another year of less than stellar profits from the electronics giant. According to a Sony spokesperson (speaking to Bloomberg), around 40 of the company's executives will return bonuses scheduled to be paid out following a general shareholders meeting this June.

Cody "Recursion" Kretsinger, the Lulzsec member who pled guilty last April for his part in hacking the Sony Pictures Entertainment website, has been sentenced to one year in jail, ordered to pay $605,663 in restitution, and perform 1,000 hours of community service.

A fourth member of the hacktivist group LulzSec has pled guilty to attacking websites owned by Sony, Nintendo, and News Corp., according to Bloomberg. Ryan Ackroyd entered a guilty plea at a hearing in London today. He will be sentenced on May 14 along with the three other hackers, according to presiding Judge Deborah Taylor.

While some may question the power of the PS4 at retail at the end of this year, retailer GameStop has absolutely no doubt that Sony's next home console system will be very, very popular.

"Although we have been given no official numbers by Sony we do believe that demand will far outpace the supply of this product during the launch window," GameStop president Tony Bartel recently told investors.

Sony Computer Entertainment Japan and Sony Computer Entertainment Asia have been consolidated into one business unit operating within Sony, according to this press release - as uncovered by Kotaku. The combined operation will now be called Sony Computer Entertainment Japan Asia.

Fans of Level-5's 2010 RPG White Knight Chronicles will be sad to hear that Sony is pulling the plug on online game servers June 18. A tweet about the same thing happening to White Knight Chronicles 2 online servers from the official PlayStation Twitter account was tweeted but has since disappeared.

The controversial God of War: Ascension trophy "Bros before Hos" will be renamed to "Bros Before Foes" via a day-one update, according to a statement sent to Joystiq by developer Sony Santa Monica. The trophy caused a bit of a controversy last week when Adam Sessler and other complained about its sexist nature.

Update: PlayStation Lifestyle has an extensive trophy list (may contain spoilers) that lists the "Bros before Hos" trophy being earned by escaping the "Fury ambush," and not by simply curb stomping a Fury.

Sony has decided to unload its holdings in mobile game developer and publisher DeNa, according to this Reuters report. Sony has reportedly sold all of its shares in the company to Japanese-based investment firm Nomura Securities for $438 million.

The PlayStation 4 will not be backwards compatible.

Got a bunch of PS3, PS2, or PS1 games?  Too bad, bucko!  You won't be able to play them on the PS4 when it launches this fall.  Oh, you can probably jam those disks into the console but that's about as far as you're going to get.  Heck, all those PSN titles you bought?  Nope, not going to be able to play those either.

How does that make you feel?

Last week we asked you to categorize your level of excitement for the PlayStation 4 - prior to all the details coming out of Sony's two-hour long press event. Exactly 504 votes were cast, with those of you looking for more information being beat out slightly by those who didn't seem to be interested in what Sony has planned with its next-generation console.

A patent filed for in 2011 by Sony Computer Entertainment America (and unearthed last week by web site Dark Zero) uses load times to determine if software being loaded into a system is legitimate or pirated.

The patent, "BENCHMARK MEASUREMENT FOR LEGITIMATE DUPLICATION VALIDATION," is described as follows in the patent application: