Sony has announced that it is to launch a PlayStation Network (PSN) pre-paid card for its Japanese fanbase. The card will be available via 52,000 store and post office-based ATM machines.

Called the 'PlayStation Ticket', the card is to be made available in early June and comes in four values: ¥1,000 (£4), ¥3,000 Yen (£12), ¥5,000 (£20) and ¥10,000 Yen (£40). You pays your yen and your card produces a 12-digit number that can then be used to download content from the PSN.

The Japanese press release makes no mention of any other territory but Japan at this time. The size of the investment - 52,000 ATM integrations in convenience stores and post offices - does indicate that Sony is taking PSN incredibly seriously in the homeland.

The pre-paid strategy will also open PSN to those gamers too young to have sent themselves screaming into debt via credit card plastic.

With gamers (and, we assume, shareholders) waiting for Home (and Littlebigplanet), and the battle for online supremacy hotting up between Sony and Microsoft, the former's move to bring ease-of-payment to the masses looks like a massive commitment.

Now, Nintendo, we'll ask once again: "Where is the online strategy?"