SOE and Pro7 has begun

[RSphil]

got an email today from SOE saying the transition to pro7 starts today. as i have a DCUO account they sent to tell me i have to link my SOE account to a pro7 one to be able to log into the game and play.

here is the txt from the notification for you to nosy at:-



Customer Service Notification


Dear Heroes and Villains,

An exciting time in SOE history has arrived and we are very pleased to be celebrating it with you, some of the most passionate DC Universe Online fans! As many of you know, SOE has partnered with ProSiebenSat.1 Games to provide and market eight of its games to players in Europe, including EverQuest® II, DC Universe™ Online, Free Realms®, Star Wars®: Clone Wars Adventures™, Magic: The Gathering - Tactics, and PoxNora®, as well as the upcoming PlanetSide® 2 and the next game in the EverQuest® franchise.

Specifically, the above mentioned SOE games will be made available through the ProSiebenSat.1 Games service in more than 40 European territories, including Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. Other countries may be added at a later date.

Under this new partnership with SOE, ProSiebenSat.1 Games will lead the effort to further enhance the presence of these SOE games in the European market. Expect more players and more focused attention on international players!

The transition process will begin today with DC Universe Online being the first game migrated to the ProSiebenSat.1 Games service. Once the transition takes place, DC Universe Online players in the above mentioned European countries will need to have or create a ProSiebenSat.1 Games account in order to play DC Universe Online. European players who want to transfer their existing SOE account and character data will need to link their SOE account with their ProSiebenSat.1 Games account.

Transitioned players who have pre-paid, non-recurring SOE memberships will automatically have their memberships transferred over to ProSiebenSat.1 Games so they can continue enjoying any remaining play time left on the account. For transitioned players who have a pre-paid, recurring SOE membership, their remaining membership time will also be transferred over to ProSiebenSat.1 Games; however, the membership will not renew at the end of the current billing cycle. Once the billing cycle ends, those players will be able to re-subscribe through the ProSiebenSat.1 Games service in order to continue enjoying the benefits of a similar membership.

What you need to do:

DC Universe Online players in the above mentioned European countries will need to have or create a ProSiebenSat.1 Games account in order to play DC Universe Online. European players who want to transfer their existing SOE account and character data will need to link their SOE account with their ProSiebenSat.1 Games account.

Linking your current SOE account to your new ProSieben Sat.1 Games account:

1. Create a ProSiebenSat.1 Games account: If you don’t already have a ProSiebenSat.1 Games account you will need to create one. You can click here to create a new ProSieben Sat.1 Games account or login with an existing account if you have one.

2. Link your SOE account to your ProSiebenSat.1 Games account: After creating a new ProSiebenSat.1 Games account or logging into your existing ProSiebenSat.1 Games account, you will be prompted to link it to your existing SOE Station Account. Enter your SOE account information and login if you want the accounts to be linked. After successfully linking the accounts, your DCUO items, character data and station cash (ProSieben SevenCash) will be available on your ProSiebenSat.1 Games account.

3. Download the new launcher. After linking your ProSieben Sat.1 Games account to your SOE Station account, you will be prompted to download an updated LaunchPad. Start the executable and select “Repair/Reinstall” when prompted. Don’t worry, you don’t have to download the whole game again! Once you’ve updated the LaunchPad you’ll be ready to play DCUO by logging you’re your ProSiebenSat.1 Games account!

4. Re-subscribe to any recurring membership: Please note that none of your personal information will be transferred to ProSiebenSat.1 Games during the account linking process. No credit card or other payment information will be shared. If you want to continue or start enjoying the benefits of a recurring membership, please sign up for a membership using your new ProSiebenSat.1 Games account.


Players who have a SOE Authenticator will not be able to use it with the ProSieben.Sat1 Games account. If you purchased an Authenticator, we will refund you the amount you spent.

European customers who maintain All Access accounts during the transition period will be transferred to ProSiebenSat.1 Games later on in the process. Further information on the transfer of All Access accounts will follow in the near future.

Again, we are very grateful to have such a diverse and passionate community, and want to assure you that SOE will continue creating dynamic games for you and your friends.

Sincerely,
Sony Online Entertainment & ProSiebenSat.1 Games

[Magpie]

Nice! interesting thanks for the heads up

[Sinilaid]

I did it a few days ago and have had no problems at all...
So Pro7 gets a 5 from me.

[Aaramus]

No email as of yet, wonder if the PS2 launcher will tell you how to set it up if you attempt to log-in.

[dafuq]

got the same mail a few days ago..

[HartnerX]

Why can't Pro7 just maintain servers (and allowing the users to use the SOE account) and do the PR stuff for Europe? If they force me to play PS2 through Pro7 I will skip the game completely.

[DownloadFailed]

Uh, I don't mean to be "that guy" but...
What the hell is Pro7?

[basti]

Hartner: Bye


Download: Big ass Europe Media Company that will maintain Almost all SOE games in Europe, Including Planetside 2.

[mintyc]

i get the feeling that SOE has been taking business advice from the underpants gnomes.

SOE plan...

step 1: Annoy entire European player base.
step 2: ?
step 3: Profit!


looking back over the history of European versions of mmo's being run by 3rd party's, i do not see this going well for SOE or us.

[RSphil]

i still dont see why they have done this. with the tech today there is no need to out source this stuff. ANET seem to be doing well both side of the pond with guild wars 2. wish SOE would let us play with SOE accounts. had the account for so long i dont want to change for a company iv never heard of untill this came about.

not sure how a company that is only known in germany can represent a game for the whole of europe. advertising will be not seen anywhere but germany as far as i can tell as they have no influence out side of that.

this is only what i see though. i hope they do a good job because if not i think the EU will loose all confidence in SOE

[Chowley]

Uh, I don't mean to be "that guy" but...
What the hell is Pro7?

I was the same myself :p

If its any help you may know them as ProSieben Sat.
I had a similar reaction - who the hell is Pro7, then someone mentioned ProSieben and I clicked. I'm not German I had just never heard of them referred to them as Pro7 before.

I also am baffled by this decision. I really, really do not like the thought of it. It just makes me think of Tera, and again with Frogster and Perfect World for Raiderz (thats actually putting me off Raiderz, which i loved when I played the Alpha). Oh and how can one forget Vivendi and their past.

[Katanauk]

This is like the Berlin wall going up all over again.

A community divided.

http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/blogs/photography/windowsofthesoul/windowsimages/03-berlin-wall-avakian.jpg

I joke I joke as far as I can tell Pro7 allows you
to play on US and EU Servers so all is well.

I was told you could only play on your accounts region . . .

I just checked SOE faq and they say theyre exploring ways to make it so yo ucan move across . . . My bad. Here's the FAQ.

http://forums.station.sony.com/dcuopc/posts/list.m?topic_id=47694

[Coreldan]

I will be holding from this change until we get a bit more info on what happens regarding PS2 beta etc.

Dont have problems with Pro7 and definitely playing on EU regardless of them, but I'm in no rush to switch around yet cos the only SOE game I play is PS2.

[LastDawn]

Will European players be able to access Test or Beta servers in order to provide feedback on upcoming game content?

Yes, players with a Test or Beta access can continue to test the games and provide feedback before release of the games that offer these servers.

From the offical F.A.Q

So there is hope that atleast fror Beta we won't have to deal with Pro7...

[HartnerX]

Hartner: Bye

Bye! ;)

I probably won't leave, PS2 is to awesome for that. I just don't want to be screw up by some thirdparty company all over again, like every other MMO which gone this way. We always get the patches late, and when you actually need this localized support you always get it in french or german.

I can't see how spliting up the community is a good idea, but we just have to wait and see how it pans out I guess..

[Shogun]

the only concern left for me is the german violence-censorship policy

we were told the game will have no gore features at all, so i hope there will be no problem, but as seen in the cgi trailer, a little blood and gore belongs into the game to look authentic. and if the game gets a little blood and pro7 forces me to use a german client that censors anything, i will rant and rage.

it will not hold me off the game completely, but i would try every single workaround like using proxy servers or replacing game client files with the us versions.

the stupid german censorship is the thing that annoys me the most in german games.
our games are even censored when they are labeled as 18+
so what´s the point of selling only to adults if even for them the games are censored.

[Emperor Newt]

the only concern left for me is the german violence-censorship policy

we were told the game will have no gore features at all, so i hope there will be no problem, but as seen in the cgi trailer, a little blood and gore belongs into the game to look authentic. and if the game gets a little blood and pro7 forces me to use a german client that censors anything, i will rant and rage.

it will not hold me off the game completely, but i would try every single workaround like using proxy servers or replacing game client files with the us versions.

the stupid german censorship is the thing that annoys me the most in german games.
our games are even censored when they are labeled as 18+
so what´s the point of selling only to adults if even for them the games are censored.

Borderlands 2 is being released uncut in Germany. A game where humans are tied to shields to act as meat shields, heads are exploding every second and people burn to death screaming, only leaving their pitch black burned skeleton on the ground.
So I really, really, really would not be concerned about that.

On the matter: Will I use my SOE nickname ingame or the Pro7 one when I link a SOE account? I really don't get that part. My SOE nickname is already taken with Pro7 so I wonder how that will turn out...

[Coreldan]

Bye! ;)

I probably won't leave, PS2 is to awesome for that. I just don't want to be screw up by some thirdparty company all over again, like every other MMO which gone this way. We always get the patches late, and when you actually need this localized support you always get it in french or german.

I can't see how spliting up the community is a good idea, but we just have to wait and see how it pans out I guess..

Just play with SOE then. Nothing at all is stopping you except latency.

[GhundiPI]

Just play with SOE then. Nothing at all is stopping you except latency.

That depends. From what I've seen so far, at the moment only those DCOU and EQ2 players from Europe who already have been playing on the SOE servers are allowed to keep playing there with their SOE account, new players are forced to migrate to the pro7 system. As an example, I have never played DCOU and when I take a look in my SOE account, the only option I have to start playing that game is to create an account with pro7. How this will work with a new game like PS2 is still unknown. But so far it is starting to look like that even if EU players are able to play on SOE servers, we will have to go through the pro7 (alaplaya) system to do that. I sincerely hope that clarification on this will be issued very quickly.

[Coreldan]

Hmh, thanks for the heads up.

[Dubious]

Well, im not transferring my account

Ill just make a new pro7 account to play on euro servers and keep my current soe account for PS2 US servers and PS1 "Global"

[Golanthe]

Well, im not transferring my account

Ill just make a new pro7 account to play on euro servers and keep my current soe account for PS2 US servers and PS1 "Global"

If you have set europe in your SOE account then there is no choice.
Once the game you play becomes available from Pro7, you can only play it with a Pro7 account.
The game blanks out in your SOE acc.

[Sturmhardt]

Nice that's a confirmation that our station cash transfers to the pro7 account. That's good bc I already bought 10000 station cash on this double-cash-day a while ago. Now I just need ps2....

[Sinilaid]

You can select between EU and US servers in the Pro7 DCUO launcher

[megamold]

it has already been confirmed that you can still play on US servers if you so desire.

and i dont really get all the hate about pro7, from what ive read they will just be hosting the servers, providing support and act as the middleman for the transactions.
they will not have control over game content or patches.
" i am not going to give pro7 any of my money! to hell with this game!" so they host and maintain the server and support and you expect them to not get paid for it? it's not like if you pay 5€ for something in the store that pro7 will get the full 5€, they just take their fair share and pass the rest on to SOE.

maybe its just me but i consider having the operators of a server in my time zone to actually BE in my time zone a good thing.

if i need some support at 8 in the evening i do not want to be told "we are sorry but everyone in the US is still asleep"
and to be perfectly honest, in my 20 years of playing videogames, i can still count the amount of times i needed support on 1 hand.

[Marinealver]

Will I need a Pro 7 account to play planetside 2 beta?

[FastAndFree]

it has already been confirmed that you can still play on US servers if you so desire.

and i dont really get all the hate about pro7, from what ive read they will just be hosting the servers, providing support and act as the middleman for the transactions.
they will not have control over game content or patches.
" i am not going to give pro7 any of my money! to hell with this game!" so they host and maintain the server and support and you expect them to not get paid for it? it's not like if you pay 5€ for something in the store that pro7 will get the full 5€, they just take their fair share and pass the rest on to SOE.

No they are not, SOE will be hosting all the servers

[Sturmhardt]

Well even better, then they just take care of the support and advertising...I don't see it being a problem as well.

[megamold]

No they are not, SOE will be hosting all the servers

well thats a piece of information that i did not know.
if they are not even hosting the servers then the whole pro7 debate is completely moot in my opinion.

[FastAndFree]

But you will still have to deal with Pro7's account system to use those SOE-run servers.
And it's unclear how support will work. If you contact Pro7 tech support will they have to contact SOE before they can help you? Because they are the ones who run the servers

DCUO players, do you know?

[megamold]

well if the servers are indeed still run by SOE, then my geuss would be that pro7 support would deal mostly with account related issues rather then ingame issues, and if the ingame support for EU will be done by pro7 then im sure they would get some sort of rights over the server to help you out.

i dont really mind having to "deal" with pro7's account system cause right now i have to "deal" with SOE's account system wich is in no way re-inventing the wheel in terms of account management.

[ringring]

I have no problem with Pro7 even though I had never previously heard of them.

[MCYRook]

the only concern left for me is the german violence-censorship policy
That is actually the last thing I'm worrying about. PS2 has either no blood at all, or very little. I really can't see it rated anything other than 16+, much less being censored.

Content-wise, what I am worried about a little bit is forced localized clients. I REALLY don't want my client software to be all "Hey, you're German! Surely you want the localized German version of this game, right? You don't even need the option to play the English original. Right!? :) "

Also, the obvious concern that customer service in all forms (patch quickness, reachability of CS when needed, availability of GMs online) may be inferior to what the non-Euros get from SOE. But that has been discussed to death in various other threads.

[megamold]

Content-wise, what I am worried about a little bit is forced localized clients. I REALLY don't want my client software to be all "Hey, you're German! Surely you want the localized German version of this game, right? You don't even need the option to play the English original. Right!? :) "


i wouldnt worry about that, i have yet to see a game that either doesnt have a language select option or a quick and easy wordpad file edit.

[TheBladeRoden]

You have my sympathies, Europeans

http://static.someecards.com/someecards/usercards/1343897350358_5486357.png

[megamold]

You have my sympathies, Europeans


i dont need it, i will do just fine.

i dont really give a damn who manages my account as long as i can play the same game :)

[RSphil]

pro7 have answered a alot of questions on the thread Basti posted. go and have a look. seems to be ok so far tbh. the answers are not too bad, i will give them a try and see. SOE will be running alot of it and from what i can see pro7 are just her so we have someone to deal with that are in the same time zone as the EU.

[IMMentat]

primary downside is that all the station cash i previously bought for use on other games is now going to stay useless to me, pro7 uses some other form of digital wallet.

SOE game, but, sorry, we only accept european-affiliate-fake-money ("SevenCash"), k-thx-bye.
Can't help but feel cheated/punished for being a long time customer (Beta and more info will be the proving point/mind changer).

[ThGlump]

Im wondering that if you refuse to transfer your account with you Station Cash, and you cant no longer play SOE games you bought that Station Cash for with your current account if you could demand refund.
They just told you that you must convert or lose money you have on their account. I dont think thats legal. Im happy i didnt buy any Station Cash in advance.

[IMMentat]

Confirmed on the pro7 email (within the OP wall of text) and pro7 questions thread.

Stationcash will be turned into Sevencash.
Thanks again everyone who responded informatively.

Linking your current SOE account to your new ProSieben Sat.1 Games account:


2. Link your SOE account to your ProSiebenSat.1 Games account: After creating a new ProSiebenSat.1 Games account or logging into your existing ProSiebenSat.1 Games account, you will be prompted to link it to your existing SOE Station Account. Enter your SOE account information and login if you want the accounts to be linked. After successfully linking the accounts, your DCUO items, character data and station cash (ProSieben SevenCash) will be available on your ProSiebenSat.1 Games account.

[Fooicus]

Hmm havn't got my pro7 email yet, perhaps its in waves?

[Vector]

I originally assumed we would still be using station cash but now we're using "Sevencash"?
Does this then mean all my Stationcash is now completely useless in terms of PlanetSide2? :/

Edit/ Already found the answer to my question sorry for my spam. :P

[FastAndFree]

Hmm havn't got my pro7 email yet, perhaps its in waves?

I presume he meant the DCUO migration mail

[Sturmhardt]

Smed just offered everyone a refund in his ama that bought station cash for ps2... Im not sure what to make if it but it seems like they might not transfer station cash to pro7 cash... Although that sounds very wrong. What now?

[RSphil]

a little more info on the SOE pro7 stuff from pro7's own website.

caution wall of txt



ProSiebenSat.1 and TF1 begin extensive partnership for online games in France

Munich, Germany, August 2, 2012. ProSiebenSat.1 is entering into a partnership of several years with France's biggest TV station Télévision Française 1 (TF1), covering the field of online games. The media company's games publisher ProSiebenSat.1 Games will thus provide the French games portal www.MYTF1.fr with its portfolio in stages, starting in mid-August. The portfolio includes games from the existing licensing and content agreements with Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) and 35 other partners. With more than 25 million active gamers, France has the second largest online gaming market in Europe. Through its partnership with TF1, ProSiebenSat.1 Games is able to achieve another milestone in its international expansion of the online games business.

The French games portal www.MYTF1.fr is run by eTF1, the French market leader's New Media subsidiary, and will be exclusively provided with free-to-play* titles by ProSiebenSat.1 Games: The agreement covers blockbuster games such as DC Universe Online (SOE), S4 League and Maestia - Rise of Keledus, with more titles to be added gradually throughout the coming months. Other games distributed by ProSiebenSat.1 and developed by leading third-party partners will follow.

Christian Wegner, Director Digital and Adjacent at ProSiebenSat.1 Group, states, "We are very much looking forward to cooperating with TF1. This marks the beginning of the Europe-wide distribution of our games. The strength of MyTF1 promises our games optimal attention, and at the same time, we are setting up the biggest games portfolio in France together."

Olivier Abecassis, CEO of eTF1, adds, "Online gaming is one of the most popular leisure activities in France. More than 25 million active gamers put France in second place in the rankings, following Germany**. The agreement with ProSiebenSat.1 contributes enormously to our top-quality positioning in a very promising market. In addition to the games shows on TF1's stations, we have now achieved a solid, strong coverage online as well, thus addressing the entire market.

About ProSiebenSat.1 Games GmbH
The games publisher ProSiebenSat.1 Games is a subsidiary of the ProSiebenSat.1 Group and focuses on the Europe-wide licensing and marketing of online games as well as games partner acquisition. The portfolio includes, among other things, S4 League, Maestia and Florensia. Since early 2012, ProSiebenSat.1 Games has held the Europe-wide licenses to several games from Sony Online Entertainment, including the blockbuster games DC Universe™ Online, EverQuest® II, Star Wars®: Clone Wars Adventures™, Free Realms®, Magic: The Gathering - Tactics®, Pox Nora®, the upcoming PlanetSide® 2, and the next installment of the EverQuest® franchise.

Über Télévision Française 1
eTF1, the TF1 group's new-media subsidiary, creates and distributes interactive and multimedia products via the web, mobiles, audiotel, SMS, IPTV and interactive TV. eTF1 also develops products based on other key Group topics, including news, community, entertainment, sport, youth and cinema.

* Free-to-play: an online game free in part or entirely. Unlike subscription-based MMOs, they are financed mainly through the sale of merchandising and optional services.
**Source Newzoo: National Gamers Survey 2012.







another tit bit of info though old i think

While we heard about Sony Online Entertainment's partnership with ProSiebenSat.1 Games Group to publish MMOs in Europe last month, the specific details of this deal were lurking under a cloud cover of mystery and speculation -- until now. SOE has posted a quite lengthy FAQ about this partnership and what it entails for the future of the studio in the Old World.

According to the deal, ProSiebenSat.1 has the license to officially publish eight of SOE's titles in 40 countries. These MMOs include DC Universe Online, EverQuest II, Free Realms, PlanetSide 2, and EverQuest Next (although not, oddly enough, EverQuest itself). SOE hopes that ProSiebenSat.1's location and expertise will result in in a greater audience for its games as well as more support and better localization for those under ProSiebenSat.1's umbrella. SOE even hopes that the partnership will result in "special content" for European players.

Previously, SOE had distribution agreements for Europe but nothing on the scale of what it now has with ProSiebenSat.1. It looks like EU players will need to transfer their accounts and characters over to ProSiebenSat.1's domain, although SOE promises that this will be an easy process. It's also important to note that these games and their servers will not interact with their North American counterparts, effectively separating the communities.

this vid for DCUO move to pro7.

i lold but dont read the comments. they dont fill you with confidence

302 Found

[IHateMMOs]

Sooooo, they didn't list nor Russia, nor Armenia, does that mean I can still play using SOE?

[Xaine]

This is like the Berlin wall going up all over again.

A community divided.

http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/blogs/photography/windowsofthesoul/windowsimages/03-berlin-wall-avakian.jpg

I joke I joke as far as I can tell Pro7 allows you
to play on US and EU Servers so all is well.

So the point of the EU players having to go through Pro7 is?..