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Sony has launched a version of PlayStation Store which enables PSP owners to purchase and download premium content via a PC. Previously PSP owners required a PS3 console to access, acquire and transfer downloadable PlayStation Store content to their PSPs. The service is available in all major territories. Existing PlayStation Network account holders may use the same log in and funding options they use when accessing the store from PS3.

The initial content selection is sparse however the store will be updated on a regular basis. Content distribution strategies are determined by Sony's regional publishing operations (ie, SCEE in PAL territories, SCEA in North America) so content type and release strategies are distinct. Currently only Sony-published titles are available as paid downloads however third party published content will be available shortly (third party content is currently available as free demos and video trailers).

Content available at launch may be split into the following categories:

Games content:
- PSP UMD games eg, Wipeout Pure (currently US region only, $14.99); Fired Up (currently PAL region only, £14.99); Go! Sudoku (£9.99)
- Titles available exclusively via download from PS Store eg, Beats (currently PAL region only, £4.99)
- Downloadable PS1 games eg, Syphon Filter 3 (£3.49)
- Demos of PSP UMD titles eg, MGS Portable Ops (Free)

Other content:
- Games and movie trailers (free)
- Wallpapers and themese (free)

The move enables PSP owners without PS3 consoles (which is the clear majority of the PSP global user base) to access and acquire digitally distributed content for the first time. Coupled with constant incremental additions to PSP functionality delivered via firmware updates the platform, judged on its technology and the services available for it, is steadily improving. The availability of content via digital retail has resonated with home console owners with successful deployments of both Xbox Live and PSN services and it will be interesting to see if Sony can replicate this success in the handheld space. Downloading games to memory stick as opposed to playing them from UMDs also offers consumers the benefits of much faster loading times, the convenience of carrying multiple games on a single memory stick and improved battery life compared with accessing content via UMD.

From Sony's perspective the move transforms the entire PSP user base into potential digital retail customers. Uniquely amongst existing digital distribution services, PlayStation's digital retail network now embraces both home and handheld console users. Provided Sony generate installed base growth for both PS3 and PSP in all major territories, access to the distribution network will be desirable for publishers of digital content given the capabilities of the devices to play various types of media and the current success of digital distribution services tied to proprietary hardware (eg, iTunes and iPod, Xbox Live and Xbox 360).

Screen Digest expects that Nintendo is likely to follow suit given the enormous user base of DS however the urgency is less pronounced given robust games sales in all major territories. In addition DS does not offer expandable memory capacity via a card reader like the PSP, which is essential for full game downloads (some PSP titles weigh in at around 1GB). As a consequence there is a possibility that Nintendo's focus on the digital retail market will wait for a new hardware iteration of DS with sufficient onboard memory which Screen Digest expects will surface in 2009.