Sony calls on VoIP crowd

Sony joined the list of companies getting into Voice over Internet Protocol technology this week with the launch a new free video phone service dubbed Instant Video Everywhere.

The software will ship with the company's latest version of Vaio BX laptops, which come with built-in video cameras. The list of VoIP service providers continues to grow, with companies like AOL and Yahoo bundling it with their instant messaging offerings. eBay got into the business recently with its purchase of Skype.

Net reaction seemed to come in two flavors: VoIP enthusiasts were excited to see another player join the game. But other tech watchers were wary, thinking of Sony's recent PR debacle over buggy digital rights management technology.

Blog community response:

"Sony IVE is about than making calls, though. According to the site, the Sony IVE Video Portal "provides access to exclusive content and information. Just simply dial S-O-N-Y (7669) from IVE and instantly view movie clips, gaming demos and more."
-- PaidContent.org

"A bigger question is whether or not the whole rootkit fiasco will make people afraid to install any software from the company. Obviously, the rootkit issue is totally separate, built by an outside firm (First4Internet) and then offered by a separate subsidiary, Sony BMG. However, the Sony name has been pinned to the whole situation, and that may cause plenty of people to have second thoughts about installing any kind of software from Sony for fear of what it might be doing to their system."
--Techdirt

"Would you trust them after this while DRM Rootkit dabacle? I don't. And I personally won't buy any Sony products, either...."
--Fergie's Tech Blog