Sony has assured owners of the older PlayStation 3 models (what we like to call the PS 3 Fat) that PlayStation Network (PSN) access issues have been resolved.
 
“We are aware that the internal clock functionality in the PS3 units other than the slim model, recognized the year 2010 as a leap year,” the company stated on their blog. “Having the internal clock date change from February 29 to March 1 (both GMT), we have verified that the symptoms are now resolved and that users are able to use their PS3 normally.”

This issue only affected earlier versions of the PS3, with PS3 Slim users being spared the frustration thanks to newer firmware, allowing them to communicate normally with Sony's PSN servers. 
 
If the time displayed in the cross menu bar (XMB) of your PS3 is still incorrect, Sony advises that you manually change the time settings. Hopefully no trouble of this kind will be experienced in 2012 - which is actually a leap year.