Darryl A. Brown, Jr.

INSS 300 – Assignment 3

PART 1

Sony PlayStation 3 Online Network (FAILURE): The Sony PlayStation 3 Online Network or better known as PSN not only connects single PS3 consoles together in a social HUB that allows players to compete against one another it is also a means for PSP (PlayStation Portable) and the soon to be released Xperia Play (PlayStation Phone) to connect gamers. This Network allows users to download games, demos, game add-ons, and movies through Sony’s PSN. This in a way is the video game’s world version of Apple iTunes.

Yet, for a network that connects game consoles to portable hand devices and is a true media gold mind, it has failed both technically and economically. How, and when? The failure occurred at the end of April 2011. This is currently known to most gamers and the PSNation (PlayStation Nation) as the “PSN Blackout.” This is a technical failure because despite being a prestige company, Sony’s firewalls were not strong enough or sophisticated enough to keep third party hackers from making an illegal intrusion on the network. Which in turn made this failure also economically fatal not just for the company but for its millions of customers whose information was stolen.

Sony has been blowing up over the past year (2010), more people became customers and those customers connected their PSN accounts with their credit card information and their current billing address. This has been compromised and is more than likely in the hands of the hackers who made this intrusion abouttwo weeks ago. This failure has caused customers to suffer due to the service outage and Sony may have lost a good percentage of their customers, well before the recovery of the Network.

Web Search Keywords (via Google):

I used the following keywords (PSN hacked again) and (Sony PSN Black out).

Sources found:

Martinez, Edecio. "Sony Struggles to Get PSN Back Up, Says Hack Was "highly Sophisticated" - Crimesider - CBS News." Breaking News Headlines: Business, Entertainment & World News - CBS News. Web. 10 May 2011. <

Strick, Robert. "Sony Reveals Catastrophic Details Regarding PSN Blackout." PS3Vault. Web. 10 May 2011. <

PART 2

Verizon Wireless 4G LTE service (SUCCESS): The new thing in when it comes to using Smartphone’s across the world is using 4G speeds. The idea of 4G is nothing but the next generation of 3G. This is the use of data like surfing the web downloading games, music, pictures and movies through your carrier’s data network at high rates of speeds. The first carrier to get 4G up and running was Verizon’s CDMA competitor, Sprint (4G WiMAX), and then T-Mobile and AT&T (HSPA+) followed right along by the end of 2010. Most people looked at VZW as the slacker as to being the last of the major US Carriers to pick up 4G. That seemed to be the case until January 2011. Reports of VZW 4G networks were running, and were dubbed LTE (Long Term Evolution). Only having a small foot print in US soil as of the moment Verizon released Wi-Fi hotspots that utilized 4G LTE speeds which blew, of course normal Wi-Fi out the water as well as the known speeds that the other 3 major carriers were pushing. Releasing its first phone in March of 2011 VZW 4G LTE had proven to be a force to be reckoned with competitors.

Verizon 4G LTE was a technical success because stepping back and looking at the quality of the service compared to the other 4G service that Verizon’s competitors has provided shows that Verizon was successful in converting over to the next-gen of Smartphone data usage. Proving that the other 4G providers’ service may be vaster than Verizon’s, it shows that the companies rushed and the line between their 4G and 3G speeds is really non-existent. Due to the success other carriers like Sprint want to change over to LTE.

Web Search Keywords (via Google):

  1. Verizon 4G LTE Speed compared to Other 4G Carriers
  2. Article found – Verizon LTE Dominates US 4G Carriers (
  3. Sprint looking to use LTE
  1. Article found – Sprint looking into an LTE future (

PART 3

I do not believe that the IT Industries has learned from their mistakes, as seen through the release of new phones and tablets that cell phone companies release throughout the year. Instead of rushing to release a high-tech IT product to keep up with other companies they should try and work out the problems. For example, Verizon Wireless has just released its second 4G LTE Smartphone. With the last release, the phone, HTC Thunderbolt, had serious battery problems. Turns out, even though this was a serious problem that plagued VZW as well as its customers, Verizon never learned from it and just recently the Samsung Charge was released and it turns out that it has the same exact problem, so if Verizon (an IT Company) had learned from the first mistake back in March, then the Charge would not be faced with the same problem that plagued the Thunderbolt.