Sony to start selling Playstations in China

Sony (SNE.NYSE, 6758.TYO) has agreed to form two ventures with Shanghai Oriental Pearl Group to start producing and selling PlayStation consoles in China, Bloomberg reported. China lifted a 13-year ban on sales of gaming machines earlier this year. Sony will have a 70% stake in one venture and 49% in the other, allowing the Japanese firm access to a market that PricewaterhouseCoopers forecasts will be worth US$10 billion next year. Console makers face an uphill slog against piracy and changing consumer behavior, as gamers increasingly migrate to mobile devices and free online games.