Financial impact of PSN hack downplayed by analyst
Videogame industry financial analyst Michael Pachter calls the direct losses due to the PSN downtime "low impact" but the breach of trust a more serious issue.
With the PlayStation Network (PSN) downtime looking like it will stretch at least two weeks before it's all said and done, and possibly longer, I reached out to Wedbush Securities managing director Michael Pachter for his thoughts on the potential financial fallout for Sony. Pachter estimates that PSN does something like $10 million a week in revenue, yielding around $3 million in gross profits. He termed the immediate loss of that revenue as a "low impact," financially.
The long term effects, though, could be another matter. "The more serious issue is a breach of trust, and some bad will because of the inconvenience," said Pachter. That too can be overcome, though, in his opinion. "If they offer some free stuff and continue to follow up, this will all be forgotten in a few months."
In all likelihood that will be the case. Should any of the potentially stolen data be put to ill-use, though, the stakes could dramatically change.
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Garnett Lee posted a new article, Financial impact of PSN hack downplayed by analyst.
Videogame industry financial analyst Michael Pachter calls the direct losses due to the PSN downtime "low impact" but the breach of trust a more serious issue.-
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I don't even think my account had my CC tied to it. However, in the off chance that it was, and something happens to my account? 0 Sony products in the future. Security should be #1 in terms of prioritizing one's online services.
I know they can't confirm if the hackers got our CC numbers or not - but even them not being able to KNOW that is incredibly upsetting. An unsecured online service or one on a system I've had to return 4 times now? >_ -
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No breach of trust here... fact is, this could have just as easily happened to Microsoft and Xbox Live... it's just the day and age we live in, stuff like this is going to happen... it wasn't but a month ago I got emails from multiple bank card companies saying my data could have been compromised... I still have those cards, and I'll still have my PSN account when this blows over.
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Everyone turning on Sony is a bad way to approach this... Any corporation regardless of the greatest of security can be hacked into.... (and it's been done) Lets hope they nail the (anon) guys who started this whole shit fire for no real cause... They obviously targeted user accounts to scare people, that's what Anon's been trying to do all along. What do they hope to succeed in doing, making the ps3 a worthless block so there's no games made for it anymore and the only option for console gaming is the wii and xbox????
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Argh, wtf. Hadn't even heard about this until now. Just checked my CC account and seems ok, but now I'll have to worry about it for a good time, or get a new card, both of which are huge annoyances. And for me, this is a huge dent in Sonys rep. If you're running a service that requires personal information and CC information, the one fucking thing you're supposed to do right is security.
"This could have happened to any company" is completely irrelevant in my book. It didn't. It happened to Sony. I've been using my CC online for years with dozens of services, and this is the first time that (as far as I know) my shit has been compromised. Sony might be a victim here as well, but they still failed to deliver on their part of the whole "yes, I'll give you my personal information and CC number if you keep it safe" -deal.
And what the hell is up with waiting for a week before spitting out the news? I understand it might have taken them some time to verify the level of the breach, but they should have come out with a "might" version ASAP, instead of playing it safe in fears of losing reputation over nothing.
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