Sony Allegedly File Patent Game Blocking Tech

A new patent has been filed that suggest Sony might be using the technology to block the use of second hand games being used in consoles.

The reported application was filed on the 9th of December 2012 by SCEJ and will be linking game discs to a users console in a similar way that the PlayStation Vita memory cards tie themselves to a users PlayStation Network account thus preventing them from being resold. Using this technology, the discs become playable only the console that they were first played on.

When checking out the patent, it goes on to detail how the game discs will use contactless tags that the console will read and will then store the consoles ID into the tag. When a game is played it will use that ID tag to determine whether the game is being played on the original console it was bought on. If not the disc will not recognise the use of itself on a different console.

If it’s real, this is how the disc IDs could work.

There are currently no details as to what console we’ll see this technology first used whether it does indeed exist at all. If this is indeed a real patent, then this would add to Sony’s efforts against second hand games sales following the online pass method introduced a few years ago. Sony has not yet acknowledged the existence of this technology.

Source: IGN.

George Sinclair is an editor for Analog Addiction, the home of the latest news, reviews and previews. You can follow George on Twitter and his blog on IGN. Don’t forget to follow the OFFICIAL Analog Addiction Twitter!