If your PS4 downloads seem particularly slow this week, you’re not imagining things. The company has announced that it’s reducing speeds for all PlayStation-related downloads in Europe, in order to reduce the current demands on the internet.
In a statement on the PlayStation blog, CEO Jim Ryan said: “Sony Interactive Entertainment is working with internet service providers in Europe to manage download traffic to help preserve access for the entire Internet community.
“We believe it is important to do our part to address Internet stability concerns as an unprecedented number of people are practising social distancing and are becoming more reliant on Internet access.”
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The post goes on to say that while game downloads might be a little sluggish, your game play should still be “robust”. Although there’s no clear confirmation in the post to say that play definitely won’t be affected.
Xbox has also reacted to the new demands on its services, but in a rather different manner. From today, the company will be rolling out new “Education Content” on its Minecraft Market. This content is mainly aimed at kids who are currently home from school – and their parents who need to find a wholesome way to fill up their kids’ time.
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Xbox head Phil Spencer outlined what to expect in a blog post: “The educational content we’ve curated lets players explore the International Space Station though a partnership with NASA, learn to code with a robot, visit famous Washington D.C. landmarks, find and build 3D fractals, learn what it’s like to be a marine biologist, and so much more.”
Xbox has promised that the content will remain in place until June 30, 2020. The blog post also gives parents a nudge towards the family settings page, which lets grown-ups set time limits for younger Xbox users.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
