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Nam Y. Huh/AP/Press Association Images

Sony follows in Microsoft's footsteps by bringing the PS4 to China

China lifted its 14-year old ban on selling consoles at the beginning of the year, paving the way for Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo to enter the market.

SONY WILL BRING its PlayStation consoles to China through two joint ventures, the Japanese gaming giant and its Chinese partner both said Monday, as they seek to tap a newly opened market.

China in January formally authorised the domestic sale of game consoles made in its first free trade zone (FTZ) in Shanghai, opening up a market with an estimated 500 million players to foreign companies including Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo.

Shanghai-listed tourism and culture firm Oriental Pearl said it would set up two joint ventures with Sony in the FTZ, one for hardware and one to handle software and services, according to a statement filed to the stock exchange.

Sony will take a 49 per cent stake in one venture and a majority 70 per cent in the other, the statement said, to make and market PlayStation consoles and related software in China.

Sony confirmed the announcement separately in an email to AFP.

Despite the news, Oriental Pearl stock closed down 0.54 per cent on Monday. Sony shares ended up 3.12 per cent in Tokyo trading.

The ventures will help introduce “quality and healthy” gaming products to Chinese players, the Oriental Pearl statement said, one of the requirements of authorities for selling in China.

Some foreign industry officials fear that such regulatory approval – conceivably to censor game content which China deems too violent, obscene or politically sensitive – could be used as a potential trade barrier.

Competitor Microsoft said in late April that it will start offering its Xbox One game console in China from September through a joint venture in the FTZ.

xbox / YouTube

The relaxation of the decade-long sales ban does not apply to console imports, though the devices are already widely available through unofficial sales channels after being smuggled into China.

China’s game revenue jumped 38 percent year-on-year to 83.2 billion yuan in 2013, according to one industry estimate, although the market was dominated by online computer games.

Analysts say Chinese consumers are unlikely to want to pay high prices for foreign consoles and authorised software, especially if it is slow coming to the market.

- © AFP, 2014

Read: Nintendo plans to develop new consoles for emerging markets >

Read: Microsoft introduces Surface Pro 3 as ‘the tablet that will replace your laptop’ >

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    Mute Finbarr Barry
    Favourite Finbarr Barry
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    May 14th 2016, 8:56 AM

    Still waiting to hear from her and the green party apologise to Waterford for forcing the Serial objector Brendan McCann on us and not forcing him out of the Party.

    He single handedly almost destroyed Waterford City economically with his spurious objections, and the worst part was the fact that he wasn’t even a true blue.

    There are an awful lot of waterfordians who will never ever vote for the Green Party after his antics.

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    Mute Dan Boyle
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    May 14th 2016, 9:59 AM

    Brendan is no longer a member of the party. But isn’t your unhappiness also with the planning authority who accepted many of his arguments.

    58
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    Mute Terence Callaghan
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    May 14th 2016, 10:29 AM

    Just reading up on him, it looks to me like he was highlighting planning irregularities which an Board Pleanala upheald. Is the problem really with the person pointing things out, or with the developers who were ignoring planning guidelines to start with? Seems strange to me that ire would directed at a person trying to prevent substandard development in the early and mid-00s, given everything we know about rampant over development of substandard projects.

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    Mute brian boru
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    May 14th 2016, 11:41 AM

    Dan are you speaking on behalf of the Green Party ? If so can you wear the badge ?

    Not everyone might be aware of who you are and how you have represented the greens. Fair play for engaging honestly but would be nice if you wore the badge if you are talking for a party.

    There ha

    15
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    Mute Alan Cooke
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    May 14th 2016, 11:44 AM

    Finbarr are you surprised with the Greens?
    When in power with the FF’ers, The then Green Party leader claimed the FFers were a corrupt party, Bertie was hauled before the Tribunal. With the lies coming out, monies being moved from here to there, changing from sterling to dollars back to Irish pounds and finishing up in a safe as bertie claimed he had no bank account, the green party swallowed the lot. To cap it all Bertie claimed he won the money on the horses because he had no proper explanation, the Greens still backed the corrupt FFers. They then went on to prop them up in Government for 2.5 more year. A corrupt party being supported by another party knowing that their leader is corrupt. In my book that equals corruption and that also include the senators of that party who did not speak out and demand the Greens pull the plug.

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    Mute irishwildlife.ie
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    May 14th 2016, 12:45 PM

    What a wonderful and inspirational woman. She has actioned change and stood up firmly for a cause she believed in. I am sure she will be an intelligent and cogent member of the Seanad. Water? I wonder how many here would attempt to scale a Russian warship whilst ice cold water is being sprayed in their face?

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    Mute Norman Wyse
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    May 15th 2016, 3:47 PM

    He was a guy that NIMBYs would go to to find a loophole in a plan. He was practically a consultant by the end. It got to be that developers would go to him first to negotiate before submission, but then he’d object anyway. Everyone is in favour of good planning, but like any system, it can be abused. Ultimately, when some plans finally made it, the boom was over and the money was gone.

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    Mute Eamonn O'Riain
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    May 14th 2016, 9:26 AM

    She’s not the only member of the Oireachtas that has a familiarity with boats and explosives, and a penchant for the colour green.

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    Mute dick dastardly
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    May 14th 2016, 8:40 AM

    She failed in Waterford here to get elected in both the European and Irish governments,low and behold the one thing the electorate can’t vote on is the seanad and she gets her nose into the trough.this is what’s wrong with politics in Ireland.no matter how many times you failed to get elected there is always room for these people

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    Mute Dan Boyle
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    May 14th 2016, 10:02 AM

    She received very good votes in both elections. Proportionately there should be five to six Greens in the Oireachtas.

    41
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    Mute Dan Boyle
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    May 14th 2016, 10:02 AM

    She received very good votes in both elections. Proportionately there should be five to six Greens in the Oireachtas.

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    Mute David Rossiter
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    May 14th 2016, 11:25 AM

    I’m hoping we got a new electoral system soon. List preferably

    11
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    Mute Fiona deFreyne
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    May 14th 2016, 11:18 AM

    Conviction politicians are lIke “hens’ teeth”. They are very rare. I am pleased to see this firmer activist now a Senator. We need that passion and commitment in politics.

    I viewed Alan Kelly on the Late Show last night. I saw no vision, no passion, no idealism, no large plan for the future just 2 lukewarm and slightly awkward references to being a social democrat and that Labour was in the family blood, but no reference to what he sees as a better society, how society might be improved, what he hints is wrong with Irish society, just a suppressed obsession with water charges and Labiur having saved the country. Kelly will just be an expedient, passionless and vision less leader, proclaiming his youth, praising his own energy and indulging I his own personal self fulfilment.

    One Grace O’Sullivan is worth a thousand Alan Kellys.

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    Mute brian boru
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    May 14th 2016, 8:16 AM

    Great to see the Greens come back hopefully they have learned from past mistakes. Its thanks to the greens we have the monstrosity of corruption Irish Water.

    Hopefully they will be a little more careful about mentioning policies around the likes of Noonan. We need political parties that care about the environment but please be careful this time we are still cleaning up the mess you left from last time.

    At least they have attempted to undue the damage by promoting the concept of enshrining water in our constitution. The one thing that would make Irish water palatable but the Noonan and co will not allow it as it scupers plans to see off the assets of the state.

    39
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    Mute Martin Byrne
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    May 14th 2016, 8:23 AM

    Bit simplistic there, Brian. Thanks to Fianna Fáil we have no rates, ergo we had to introduce Irish water

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    Mute Josephine Sweeney
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    May 14th 2016, 8:27 AM

    So now grace is cashing in

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    Mute Dan Boyle
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    May 14th 2016, 9:56 AM

    The Greens have had absolutely nothing to do with IrishWater. That is solely a Fine Gael creation.

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    Mute Assel Dannourah
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    May 14th 2016, 10:18 AM

    FF/FG/Lab all had a hand in the creation of Irish water

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    Mute brian boru
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    May 14th 2016, 11:37 AM

    That was made possible by the greens preaching to the masses about the importance of water.

    There are a corrupt cohort in Leinster house that feel the only way to effect change in the country is to tax it and if possible privatise it. If Irish water had been led by a referendum on the ownership of it there would never been an issue and we would not have political policing in ireland.

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    Mute Alan Cooke
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    May 14th 2016, 11:48 AM

    The Greens did have a big hand in F***ing up the country and the austerity that that led to.

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    Mute Pat O'Brien
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    May 14th 2016, 5:31 PM

    Wonder what she thinks of GreenPeace now who have advocated the hunting of Polar bears, an endangered species. Or the director of green peace who accepted the gift of a baby fur seal pelt!!! Sea Shepard who was set up by one of the founders of Green peace have been very vocal on how bad an organisation they have become!! Any views yourself there Dan O Boyle?

    5
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    Mute Neuville-Kepler62F
    Favourite Neuville-Kepler62F
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    May 14th 2016, 12:17 PM

    The Greens scuttled my 10 yr old car with a penal “regressive” car tax of €710 v €280 for well off who can afford new cars. No tax on aviation fuel taking €6 billion out of the country every yr in foreign trips but my old petrol car doing about 3000 miles a year as a pensioner scuttled by the Greens. Out Out Out … a gormless crew … get lost Greens!

    See what 4000 others in the same boat say about this most regressive Motor Tax at https://www.change.org/p/unfair-car-tax-law/c

    Dail & Seanad Drive-by Demonstration – July 2nd 2016 – https://www.facebook.com/irlunderground

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    Mute SteoG
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    May 14th 2016, 3:22 PM

    Hang on there Neuville, I will get the violin and accompany your post with a little melancholy. Get over it! I was stung too. So what.

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    Mute Andrew Murphy
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    May 14th 2016, 5:48 PM

    Fuel tax on international aviation is prohibited by international agreements, for example the EU-US Open Skies Agreement. Outrageous, but nothing something the Greens can change unilaterally.

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    Mute Andrew Murphy
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    May 14th 2016, 5:48 PM

    (not)

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    Mute Neuville-Kepler62F
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    May 14th 2016, 8:39 PM

    @SteoG “…So what?.” … Gormless!
    @AndrewM ..”Outrageous, but not something the Greens can change unilaterally.” … but the greens attack pensioners and those in lower socio economic groups who cant afford new cars with the most regressive tax! Greens Get Lost!

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    Mute Cal McLaughlin
    Favourite Cal McLaughlin
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    May 14th 2016, 11:40 AM

    Te French eh.
    What a duplicitous nation.

    11
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