Sony (SNE +2.03%) is boosting its options by agreeing to develop a live-action adaptation of acclaimed comic book Powers for PlayStation TV, Fool contributor Tim Beyers says in the following video.
In some ways, the timing couldn't be better. Twenty-First Century Fox (FOXA +0.00%) tried and failed twice to get a Powers pilot on air. Last year, Microsoft (MSFT 0.22%) announced plans for an Xbox TV series based on the hit game, Halo. Sony is defending its turf with a property that fans want to see.
Granted, it's more likely to be a defensive move. The console war is heating up with Valve introducing Steamboxes, and the Xbox One commissioning a huge exclusive in Titanfall. Exclusive PlayStation TV programming could draw gamers otherwise on the fence to Sony's consoles.
Yet, the story doesn't begin and end there. Sony is a studio, after all, and producing content is key to its business. The "Pictures" segment responsible for movie and TV production and distribution accounted for 10.7% of revenue and 20.8% of operating profit in the most recent fiscal year, a portion of which derives from deals to resell original programming via DVD, Blu-ray, on-demand, international territories, and the like.
In that sense, PlayStation TV could become a long-term seeding ground for properties that go on to produce years of high-margin, annuity-style license revenue. Just the sort of deal that could help Sony boost cash flow for feeding the sorts of franchise-building efforts needed to differentiate the studio from its peers.
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