The Letter from the Producer Live broadcast is currently being aired by Square Enix. Director and Producer Naoki Yoshida has confirmed the dates of the open beta for the PS3 and PC MMORPG:

The open beta dates will be from August 17th and will continue until August 19th, so from Saturday to Monday. If you were in the earlier beta phases, you can start playing on Friday, the 16th.

Early access for people who preordered A Realm Reborn and legacy members of the original XIV will start August 24th.

Here’s something awesome though – all progression made in the open beta and early access will be carried over into the final game (unless something terrible happens to their servers), so consider these access points a soft release of the upcoming MMO.

Last but not least, the Arcanist class will be available during the open beta so go and make tons of arcanist characters!