Pay per view programmes

[FoolKiller]

Hmmmm... Why would you pay for Top Gear episodes when you can go to finalgear.com and download all episodes from 2002 til now for free?? And theyre even in pretty good quality as well... 700 MB for recent episodes... Oh well... if you want to pay for it you can... its your money LOL

Aren't those torrents? It even says torrent on the site.

Torrents are not exactly legal in some places.

 

[magburner]

If I have to pay to watch any episode of Top Gear, I will play holy hell! I paid for it once already, so I'm sure as hell not paying for it again!

 

[Johnhannibal]

If I have to pay to watch any episode of Top Gear, I will play holy hell! I paid for it once already, so I'm sure as hell not paying for it again!

Do you get the dvd's of every series the BBC made for free also?

 

[H20HYBRID_GT]

GT-TV... pfft. Before PD start asking for my money, then they best sort out the online bumper car fiasco first off.

^^ That's my saying

Checked mine (NA version) and it says Pay Per View. Hurm.

It only says pay to view for the GTR Inside videos, which are already downloadable, makes sense.

 

[DustDriver]

I would pay money if I could export it so that i can watch it on other devices/tvs.
If you have a (HD) recorder you'll only have to pay once and you can watch them as many times as you want.

And Sony hasn't released prepaid cards for the psn store, so I don't even have the ability to pay for it, even if i wanted to.

 

[FoolKiller]

I would pay money if I could export it so that i can watch it on other devices/tvs.
If you have a (HD) recorder you'll only have to pay once and you can watch them as many times as you want.

And Sony hasn't released prepaid cards for the psn store, so I don't even have the ability to pay for it, even if i wanted to.

Do you all not have things like pre-paid Visa cards or anything?

I mean I hear this complaint alot, but in the US you can pick up a pre-paid card easily. I saw a huge display with them at the grocery store yesterday.

Maybe it is just a US thing, but I hear the PSN card complaints coming out of the US too, which is slightly annoying.

 

[MustangSVT]

3 bucks for a Top Gear episode? That's too much. Are they at least in high definition?

 

[FoolKiller]

3 bucks for a Top Gear episode? That's too much. Are they at least in high definition?

Keep in mind that is a straight conversion from the Yen listed in that article.

They don't always do straight conversions from region to region, rather they often try to match similar pricing in the market. It is quite plausible that they will do $1.99 to be comparable to both iTunes and the PSN video service.

 

[MustangSVT]

Keep in mind that is a straight conversion from the Yen listed in that article.

They don't always do straight conversions from region to region, rather they often try to match similar pricing in the market. It is quite plausible that they will do $1.99 to be comparable to both iTunes and the PSN video service.

Well I'm in Canada and we get usually screwed over, so I'll assume $3. For that kinda money for just 1 episode, I'd expect it to be really good high-definition. If it isn't, then it's simply not worth the money when you can just pay for BBC Canada (which shows top gear) for ~$2/month with the cable channel.

 

[Lain]

Aren't those torrents? It even says torrent on the site.

Torrents are not exactly legal in some places.

Torrents aren't illegal, but the content that some torrents distribute is illegal. And I'm inclined to believe that it is illegal for finalgear.com to be distributing Top Gear episodes.

 

[magburner]

Do you get the dvd's of every series the BBC made for free also?

No I don't (and I see where your coming from with the question), but buying regular broadcast content from another company other than the BBC is wrong in my mind.

I have in the past thought about buying a couple of the flagship (ie. big budget) BBC documentaries. This is different though. Top Gear is a run of the mill series, and is not made to as high a standard as those aforementioned documentaries.

 

[P1]

I am only going to buy the episodes that have good challenges.

 

[Gaz Vonhammer]

Over on the playstation blog they are saying 99c for the first 2 weeks and then it's $1.99.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2008/07/30/a-grand-update-for-gran-turismo-5-prologue/

Still yet to find a UK price but I guess it will be a pound for the first 2 weeks and £1.99 after that.

 

[DustDriver]

Do you all not have things like pre-paid Visa cards or anything?

I mean I hear this complaint alot, but in the US you can pick up a pre-paid card easily. I saw a huge display with them at the grocery store yesterday.

Maybe it is just a US thing, but I hear the PSN card complaints coming out of the US too, which is slightly annoying.

prepaid psn cards aren't available yet for europe.
And visa isn't widely used here in Europe.
I don't know anyone who has one.
For me it's free to transfer money to another bankaccount in europe, as long as I use the BIC or IBAN number of the other person's bank account.

Visa on the other hand is expensive if you don't use it very often.

 

[RedBaron]

Torrents aren't illegal, but the content that some torrents distribute is illegal. And I'm inclined to believe that it is illegal for finalgear.com to be distributing Top Gear episodes.

They're not distributing them, they have only link to site that store the torrent and even that site is not distributing Top Gear episodes. Torrent downloaders are distributing them themselves. That's the thing.

 

[888 Tuning]

GT-TV... pfft. Before PD start asking for my money, then they best sort out the online bumper car fiasco first off.

Not wanting to single you out here .. but the huge difference in PS3 gaming compared to all before is that the online experience is an ongoing cost to PD... Its a little unrealistic to fork out $50(AUD) for a game, then get ongoing updates, downloads, constantly changing races video content (that has to be paid for by PD) etc etc all for free.
Its safe to say that this is so far removed from a demo that it just about qualifies as a proper game and ongoing work being put in by PD will keep it as such till the full version comes out.

Patches will be free, expansion and additional content must be charged for.

This will undoubtedly exist in the full version when it comes out... if its enough for you to stop playing GT5, you can go and play anyone of the other online games available for the PS3.. oh hang on, they all charge for their expansion packs too... No wonder the Guitar Hero series is such a money maker.

 

[Palleraa]

prepaid psn cards aren't available yet for europe.
And visa isn't widely used here in Europe.
I don't know anyone who has one.
For me it's free to transfer money to another bankaccount in europe, as long as I use the BIC or IBAN number of the other person's bank account.

Visa on the other hand is expensive if you don't use it very often.

Sounds like a wierd european country to me. I live in denmark and we use credit card / visa for everything. None of my friends don't have a credit card, and most have a Visa which is free. The times I have been interrailing europe it was possible to use Visa everywhere. Where are you from?

 

[Blitz187]

Aren't those torrents? It even says torrent on the site.

Torrents are not exactly legal in some places.

Yes that is true.... I live in Holland...and the laws for downlaoding content here are very easy going.... I think they can only bust you for Distributing.... but if you download for your own use and dont distribute they cant do ANYTHING....LOL ok... so yeah I guess you could go to the website depending on where you live..

 

[magburner]

I've been thinking a little more about the Top Gear episodes thing (I was a little tired last night), and I suppose it would be acceptable to charge for certain episodes like the trip to the North Pole, or that race across the desert, but I'm not entirely happy about another company profiting from something that was created for Licence payers.

Johnhannibal asked if I had ever thought about buying BBC DVD's, and in hindsight I gave an incomplete answer. I haven't brought a BBC DVD, though I have in the past thought about it. If I did decide to buy one though, at least I know the money would go back into the BBC, and not line the pockets of some other company, as this would.

And visa isn't widely used here in Europe.
I don't know anyone who has one.

Check you debit card pal, its probably Visa. I know for sure that Barclay's Bank use it on their debit cards and credit cards, as do the majority of other banks and building societies.

 

[DustDriver]

Sounds like a wierd european country to me. I live in denmark and we use credit card / visa for everything. None of my friends don't have a credit card, and most have a Visa which is free. The times I have been interrailing europe it was possible to use Visa everywhere. Where are you from?

I live in Belgium. You can pay with it, but people here don't use it often.
I read the same complaints on Dutch forums where most of the gamers don't have visa or a credit card either.

edit: @ Magburner
No, if you want to have a credit card you have to pay for it.
It's not a credit or debit card.

 

[888 Tuning]

I've been thinking a little more about the Top Gear episodes thing (I was a little tired last night), and I suppose it would be acceptable to charge for certain episodes like the trip to the North Pole, or that race across the desert, but I'm not entirely happy about another company profiting from something that was created for Licence payers.

Johnhannibal asked if I had ever thought about buying BBC DVD's, and in hindsight I gave an incomplete answer. I haven't brought a BBC DVD, though I have in the past thought about it. If I did decide to buy one though, at least I know the money would go back into the BBC, and not line the pockets of some other company, as this would.
.

Definately worth the money. If you have held off buying the box sets they offer the latest ones are really really worth their money, especially given the kind of people here who are passionate about driving and cars.

I dont see why they should be free just for GT5P people when you cannot legally get them free anywhere else right ?

The trip to the north pole is a standout episode, as is the Davos to Stelvio (Best driving Road) episode.

I would be curious to know though, and will go and test this.. but surely you could run your PS3 into your DVD recorder and record the episodes you want to keep.

 

[Sutil_MadMax]

I don't mind paying for visual contents as much as buying them it's completely discrecional and doesn't affect the game.

But have a thought to this:
What will happen when they'll come with an update of new circuits (f.e. the desired Nurburing) or 10 new cars all them fastest than any other one already available on the game and they'd be asking us for money?

Every time i've seen news of a new update with the starting frase:
"day x there will be available a free of charge update" (i traslate from spanish)
i used to wonder, "why do they say free of charge", "it is maybe going to change on the future"
I've been playing Gt from the very beginning and i wouldn't like to be rewarded for it such a way.

 

[FoolKiller]

Well I'm in Canada and we get usually screwed over, so I'll assume $3. For that kinda money for just 1 episode, I'd expect it to be really good high-definition. If it isn't, then it's simply not worth the money when you can just pay for BBC Canada (which shows top gear) for ~$2/month with the cable channel.

I thought Sony fixed the currency discrepancy. At least they said they did.

But that was for the PSN Store too, and this is not, technically, the PSN Store. So, who knows.

Torrents aren't illegal, but the content that some torrents distribute is illegal. And I'm inclined to believe that it is illegal for finalgear.com to be distributing Top Gear episodes.

I have a feeling that a little digging would find US lawmakers wouldn't like me using finalgear.com. Nor would, I bet, BBC lawyers.

Top Gear is a run of the mill series, and is not made to as high a standard as those aforementioned documentaries.

I thought entertainment value was what made Top Gear great, not production quality (which isn't shabby either). That is what you would be paying for.

I've been thinking a little more about the Top Gear episodes thing (I was a little tired last night), and I suppose it would be acceptable to charge for certain episodes like the trip to the North Pole, or that race across the desert, but I'm not entirely happy about another company profiting from something that was created for Licence payers.

Johnhannibal asked if I had ever thought about buying BBC DVD's, and in hindsight I gave an incomplete answer. I haven't brought a BBC DVD, though I have in the past thought about it. If I did decide to buy one though, at least I know the money would go back into the BBC, and not line the pockets of some other company, as this would.

Um, do you think the BBC handed them over for free? I mean, the video service on the PS Store is giving money to the producers, and I can almost guarantee that your payment here will have a percentage also go to the BBC.

That is what the writers strike in the US was about. Digital downloads were lining the pockets of the production companies, but the writers weren't given any kind of raise. Look at GTTV as your local grocery store and the BBC as Coca-Cola (the company). You go to your grocery store and buy a Coca-Cola product (let's just say Coke). So, you buy a Coke. Now, do you think Coca-Cola got nothing from it and only makes money if you buy their beverages from their vending machines? No. Coca-Cola gets their money in one of two ways, either the store gives them a percentage of the sale or the store pays Coca-Cola for their entire shipment of Coke up front.

So, either the BBC has already been handed a sum of money by Sony/PD for each episode they put online, or they will take a percentage of what you pay. Then as time goes on the popularity of the BBC material will be used to negotiate any change in financial compensation.

Trust me, the BBC did not just hand over the rights to Top Gear for free. If anything you will guarantee the financial security of Top Gear at the BBC by purchasing their episodes from GTTV.

Over on the playstation blog they are saying 99c for the first 2 weeks and then it's $1.99.

I saw that too. I will likely sample a bit of everything for that price and then use that to determine what I do and do not want.

prepaid psn cards aren't available yet for europe.
And visa isn't widely used here in Europe.
I don't know anyone who has one.
For me it's free to transfer money to another bankaccount in europe, as long as I use the BIC or IBAN number of the other person's bank account.

Visa on the other hand is expensive if you don't use it very often.

I think you have misunderstood me.

In the US we have what are called pre-paid debit cards. These are provided by Visa/Master Card/whoever. You go into a store and by them like a gift card or gift certificate. So, say you buy one for $25. You now have a credit/debit card that is worth only $25. It doesn't charge you any more. You get no bill after the initial purchase.

You can then take this card valued at $25 and use it exactly like a credit or debit card to pay up to $25 for anything that accepts a credit card from that company (we will use Visa for this example).

My comment is that I keep hearing lots of kids in the US talk about how they do not have credit cards and the PSN cards aren't available, but they do have $25 in cash. The thing is, they can take their $25 in cash and walk into any Wal*Mart (every place in the US has one) and buy a Visa card valued at $25 and use it on the PSN Store. The US complaints definitely need to stop because there is an alternative that is no more difficult than the PSN cards would be. In fact, I imagine that after a few 12-year-old kids buy Siren: Blood Curse (Rated: M/18+) PSN Cards will be scrutinized by the legal authorities here in the states and it will only be a matter of time before someone tries to limit their sale to people 17 and up.


Anyway, so does Europe not have any kind of pre-paid debit/credit cards? I know the PSN cards are nearly impossible to find.

Every time i've seen news of a new update with the starting frase:
"day x there will be available a free of charge update" (i traslate from spanish)
i used to wonder, "why do they say free of charge", "it is maybe going to change on the future"
I've been playing Gt from the very beginning and i wouldn't like to be rewarded for it such a way.

Because otherwise XBox fans say things like, "I bet you have to pay for it. So much for free PSN." I've seen it happen on Joystiq. By saying it is free it prevents any kind of misinformation or flame wars online that can lead to PR nightmares.

That isn't to say they couldn't charge for an update, but in a world where DLC is very often charged for they have to say it is free every time, even if they never intend to charge.

Plus, added tracks practically can't be charged for until we have private online rooms. It would screw up the automated matchmaking service. They could work around it, but it would probably be just as easy to provide private rooms first.

 

[robie_rb26dett]

I want jackass and pimp my ride in gt tv ahahah

 

[TurkeyBurgers]

I do not like the idea of paying for these. I just watched all of the videos on the GT-TV section and to tell you the truth the GT-R Legend movies had my heart racing. It really made me see how much these guys LOVE cars. They put SO MUCH into the little details for sounds, track dimensions, consoles. I think a lot of people will miss out on some GREAT videos if they charge for it. It is also a giant advertisement for the cars in a way, hell after watching the EVO X I want to go out and buy one. If you charge anyone, charge the car manufactures to bid for who gets their car aired next.

 

[GT_Fanatic]

Not wanting to single you out here .. but the huge difference in PS3 gaming compared to all before is that the online experience is an ongoing cost to PD... Its a little unrealistic to fork out $50(AUD) for a game, then get ongoing updates, downloads, constantly changing races video content (that has to be paid for by PD) etc etc all for free.
Its safe to say that this is so far removed from a demo that it just about qualifies as a proper game and ongoing work being put in by PD will keep it as such till the full version comes out.

Patches will be free, expansion and additional content must be charged for.

This will undoubtedly exist in the full version when it comes out... if its enough for you to stop playing GT5, you can go and play anyone of the other online games available for the PS3.. oh hang on, they all charge for their expansion packs too... No wonder the Guitar Hero series is such a money maker.

I'm not saying it will stop me playing GT5p, it won't. Kazunori has stated in an IGN interview that he has 30 guys commited to GT-TV and that he is 100% commited to it himself. Kazunori also stated that PD are soley concentrating their efforts into GT5p and have put GT5 on the back burner. All i'm saying is that PD should rectify the bumper car nightmare that most people complain about, before asking for peoples money. I'm sure there will be some good quality high def vids on GT-TV that will be worth paying for, but people play GT5p for the online racing element, so that shoulld take priority over charging for vids.

 

[888 Tuning]

I'm not saying it will stop me playing GT5p, it won't. Kazunori has stated in an IGN interview that he has 30 guys commited to GT-TV and that he is 100% commited to it himself. Kazunori also stated that PD are soley concentrating their efforts into GT5p and have put GT5 on the back burner. All i'm saying is that PD should rectify the bumper car nightmare that most people complain about, before asking for peoples money. I'm sure there will be some good quality high def vids on GT-TV that will be worth paying for, but people play GT5p for the online racing element, so that shoulld take priority over charging for vids.

I totally agree, but it would be safe to say that there is more than 1 person working on this game, hence are more than capable at multi project development.

..Doesnt the update say they are addressing the collision physics ?? Im pretty sure it does, so this whole point about fixing before is kinda moot.. its being fixed

 

[GT_Fanatic]

..Doesnt the update say they are addressing the collision physics ?? Im pretty sure it does, so this whole point about fixing before is kinda moot.. its being fixed

The collision physics are for sure being addresed, but I very much doubt that it is going to rid us of the annoying bumper car carnage that has been present in the game since launch.

To what degree the new collision physics will have in relation to the punters, we will have to see.
My point is, PD should be making it a priority to fix the major flaws in the online racing side of the game, since that is what people are more interested in, instead of the video content.

 

[TurkeyBurgers]

SUPERGT! I just watched a couple of the 2008 first race clips on youtube, WTF?!?!? WTF!?!?! I say again WTF!?!?! I live in the US, North Carolina. Americans LOVE bad ass cars. WHY ARE WE STUCK WITH NASCAR? WTF? WHY DO WE NOT HAVE $H1T LIKE THIS? WTF? I feel like I have just been molested. Like I just opened my parents closet and saw the presents that are supposed to be from Santa, like I just took a peek at my Mom exchanging my tooth for a quarter. Is this stuff for real? There MUST be some kind of government conspiracy to prevent Americans from watching racing like this here. I really hope and pray that Gran Turismo T.V. breaks through our Ricky Bobby barrier here in America. Pour this amazing kind of racing down our throats like a pepsi Sponsorship. I wish I could find an english translation of those movies. What other kinds of sick racing do they do throughout the world that we Americans get censored from watching?

 

[DustDriver]

I think you have misunderstood me.

In the US we have what are called pre-paid debit cards. These are provided by Visa/Master Card/whoever. You go into a store and by them like a gift card or gift certificate. So, say you buy one for $25. You now have a credit/debit card that is worth only $25. It doesn't charge you any more. You get no bill after the initial purchase.

You can then take this card valued at $25 and use it exactly like a credit or debit card to pay up to $25 for anything that accepts a credit card from that company (we will use Visa for this example).

My comment is that I keep hearing lots of kids in the US talk about how they do not have credit cards and the PSN cards aren't available, but they do have $25 in cash. The thing is, they can take their $25 in cash and walk into any Wal*Mart (every place in the US has one) and buy a Visa card valued at $25 and use it on the PSN Store. The US complaints definitely need to stop because there is an alternative that is no more difficult than the PSN cards would be. In fact, I imagine that after a few 12-year-old kids buy Siren: Blood Curse (Rated: M/18+) PSN Cards will be scrutinized by the legal authorities here in the states and it will only be a matter of time before someone tries to limit their sale to people 17 and up.
Anyway, so does Europe not have any kind of pre-paid debit/credit cards? I know the PSN cards are nearly impossible to find.

I clearly misunderstood you.
Just did a search on google and there are VISA prepaid cards here in Europe.
You have to get them at a bank and you can wire money to that visa card and you can only spend that money.
So a bit different from the US version, but still prepaid.
To bad my own bank doesn't sell them