Saw this and this discussing a sony patent that was submitted last year discussing pausing games for in-game advertising (online and offline). While afaik nothing has come of it yet, if they were to advertise in-game to be more like commercial TV - will they start providing games for free the same way? IMO advertising is something that should only be used as a compromise - for example, free phone apps = ads, paid apps = none, free tv = ads, pay tv = well.. ads in .Au, but you get where i'm going.

A recently discovered Sony patent details a method for pausing games to insert ads.

The patent involves the game first slowing down as a warning appears on-screen that it is about to pause. The ad then fills the screen, providing another warning that the game will resume right before the ad ends.

There is a description of how the same method could be used for networked multiplayer games, pausing all players at once to show an ad.

It would also be possible for players to rewind their game slightly after an ad, in case the slowed gameplay or warning message had caused a user to miss part of the game.

It should be noted that Sony filed the patent in July of 2011, with the patent granted last November.

Pop-up ads of this nature are fairly common among smartphone and tablet games, an area where Sony has few games of its own.

The patent does specifically mention its use with video game consoles, as well as the possibility of being implemented in DVD players and DVRs.

No one would pay for TV with adverts in either would they, right guys?

Games and TV aren't the same thing derp

how is paying to watch TV any different to paying to play a game?

the whole idea they are meant to recoup costs / make profit from selling TV subscription, in the same way companies like sony are meant to profit from selling consoles and games.

the fact that TV can get away with double dipping is due to lack of options.. well not anymore.

if Sony were to charge for games and interrupt them with Ads, unless everyone in the game industry gets in on the action it would be like a poison pill for sony.

We already wait for loading screens. Perfect spot for a 10second advert between levels/stages

Grand Theft Auto series does it well with tongue-in-cheek advertising, though not so much real advertising as fake rip offs.

and people hate EA for their unskippable intro screens...

...discussing a sony patent that was submitted last year ...

So you missed the part where this isn't the first time they've filed this patent then? coz apparently Sony did this about a year into the PS3's life...