"firmware / software which are Sony's intellectual property"
Now, I see that as bullshit right there. If I paid for a product, I see it as my right to do what the hell I want with it, without regard to whether that product is hardware, software or a bit of each. The code might be Sony's IP, but the copy of it inside my (hypothetical) console is MY COPY, with which I will do as I please. Now, that doesn't include passing it off as mine or duplicating it and selling it on to other people - the law rightly forbids me from doing so. If I want to modify it for my own use however, I do not see any moral reason why I should not be able to. Sony might say I can't but, honestly, fuck them.
It's about time corporations were reminded that once they have sold something they have no control over what the customer does with it.
Anonymous might be a bit out of line in DDOSing Sony's sites, but I'm not going to shed any tears over it.