Sony has said that a millennium-style bug that prevented thousands of PlayStation 3 owners from using its online games network has been resolved.

The firm said that the fault had been caused by machines that had "recognised the year 2010 as a leap year".

The problem did not affect the newer "slim" models of the PS3, Sony said.

The Japanese electronics giant had previously advised gamers to stop using their games console until the problem was fixed.

"We are aware that the internal clock functionality in the PlayStation (PS3) units other than the slim model, recognized the year 2010 as a leap year," said Patrick Seybold of the firm in a blog post.