Sony's Ludicrous PS3 Marketing Misstep

Hello? Sony? Why are you doing this?

Despite the fact that the Nov. 17 launch of the Playstation 3 is three weeks away here in the US (only about 2.5 in Japan), Sony (SNE) held a Playstation 3 preview in San Francisco for the press last week, here covered by the Seth Schiesel for the New York Times. And it was clear he loved it.

It was only then that I looked up and realized that the dozen other PS3 stations around the room had been shut down. Almost all of the journalists Sony had invited to test drive the new machine, and almost all of the Sony employees there to handle them, had decamped downstairs to watch Ludacris (pictured), in full blinged-out mode, perform a few yards away from the sushi bar.

I like Dirty South hip-hop, and I really like Ludacris. But the emotions that surged through me in that instant were not excitement and anticipation. Rather, they were anger and frustration: anger that I had to put down the controller and frustration that I had to go see Ludacris rather than keep playing.

That’s the kind of effect the PlayStation 3 can have on a person.

So let's get this straight. They invite the press to an event to experience the Playstation 3, and then promptly turn the machines they want them to experience off so that everyone can experience Ludacris? Maybe that's a good name for it: ludicrous marketing.

We've previously noted that we think pre-announcing products is a marketing blunder, and despite our enthusiasm for the PS3, we think it is even more of a blunder for this product. Sony is busy de-mystifying the PS3 at a time when they should be building up excitement and anticipation for it. And that just means they're wasting a lot of marketing dollars. No wonder the company is reducing earnings estimates.

Sony's advantage with PS3 is not technology, but marketing. But this event certainly didn't demonstrate that skill. With the Playstation 3 launch, it's either game on or game over for Howard Stringer and a host of other Sony execs. Let's hope they have some better planned events than this one in their launch campaign.