Today Sony released firmware update 2.35 for the Playstation 3, the minor update according to Sony fixes stability to several PS3 games. Considering Rockstar's announcement about the freezing problems in GTA IV being Sony's problem you would think this patch would solve the issues.

Unfortunately so far there appears to be no change, however Sony have said that they have identified the issue and are working on a solution. So maybe in the next one?

PlayStation 3 firmware update 2.35 is now available. According to the US PlayStation Blog, v2.35 is "a relatively minor update to improve stability of some PS3 titles." We're willing to wager a handful of stolen cars that "some PS3 titles" is a better way of saying Grand Theft Auto IV

Update: As noted in the comments of the blog by Sony's Al de Leon, this upgrade does not fix GTA IV. Said de Leon, "I just want to clarify that this upcoming firmware update isn't related to GTA IV. For those of you who may still have an issue playing the game on your PS3, we have identified a solution that should resolve the issue. You can contact SCEA Consumer Services for support."

Bale Fire via joystiq.com »