Okay, if you’re not aware, the PS3 “fat” had a weird internal clock bug that limited some users’ ability to get onto the Playstation network (PSN).  The bug even prevented some from playing offline games too.

At 9:22AM Sony posted the following to their twitter feed: http://bit.ly/cZQKpn

At 6:07PM this update came across saying the PSN had been restored: http://bit.ly/cwNKBF

Now, obviously, this isn’t/wasn’t a huge issue that got fixed quickly.  However, I believe the reason it wasn’t a huge issue was due to Sony’s quick response.  Imagine if Sony had neglected the problem for two or three days.  Gamers continue to bombard forums and other online outlets with reports of their systems failing to work properly.  Eventually, the company begins to take tremendous amounts of heat from gamers and the community about their lack or response, etc.

Let’s take a look at a somewhat similar issue faced by Microsoft.  I say somewhat similar because I do not think the Xbox 360 red ring of death (RROD) issue is exactly similar to the PS3 issue.  Actually, the RROD issue was much more severe.  The Microsoft response to their problem was very different.  Microsoft, when faced with a severe problem, initially denied such a problem existed.  Eventually, much later, Microsoft admitted they had a problem.  Their reply?  Extend the warranties on all the 360 systems to make up for their poor hardware issue.

Sony, when faced with a much less significant issue, enacted an almost immediate reply and promise to be fixed within 24 hours.  Do you see the difference?  I’m not Microsoft bashing with this post, but simply illustrating the difference in organizational philosophy between Sony and Microsoft.