AOL to be Offered on PlayStation 2

Sony Computer Entertainment (www.sony.com) and America Online ( www.aol.com) have announced that they will work together to deliver the AOL experience to consumers on the PlayStation 2 platform.

The agreement will help AOL achieve its objective of moving beyond the PC, and will also allow consumers to hook-up to multiplayer Internet-enabled games and entertainment.

The agreement between Sony and AOL is not exclusive, but it will likely help PlayStation 2 remain competitive against Microsoft's Xbox, which is expected to be released this fall. Xbox will also offer the ability to connect to a broadband connection and Internet service.

Also under the new agreement, SCEI and AOL state that they will explore other interactive entertainment opportunities, including broadband technologies and the development of a Netscape browser to optimize the Internet experience on PlayStation 2. Additional hardware including a hard disk drive, LCD display, keyboard and mouse will be available to enable consumers to use these interactive features.

These new products are expected to be available by the end of the year. In addition, the AOL features will be incorporated into the PlayStation 2 Software Development Kits (SDKs) available to content developers.

"Given our shared corporate vision and power for the evolution of online computer entertainment, AOL and SCEI make ideal partners," said Ken Kutaragi, president and CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.