MUMBAI: Japanese media conglomerate Sony has announced that users of the PlayStation 3 will shortly be able to download Sony movies and television shows on their gaming console.

Sony made this announcement to hype the launch of the PlayStation 3 in Europe as well as push more sales of the system in the US.

In creating a movie and music download service for the PlayStation 3, Sony will be putting itself in competition most directly with Microsoft and the Xbox 360 platform. The inclusion of a hard drive in the PlayStation 3 is part of a larger strategy to boost the PlayStation‘s presence as an entertainment hardware device, rather than just a game machine.