By Thomas Costes – Modified on 29 Jul 2022 at 16:25
While Playstation just released Q1 2022 numbers for the PS5, several fears have been raised regarding its future price.
PS5: what is the state of the figures?
As we know, the Covid-19 pandemic has largely slowed down global production. Consoles are no exception. Whether it’s Microsoft or Sony, all electronics companies have been directly impacted by the drop in trade since the beginning of 2020. At the same time, we all know that it’s still complicated to get the PS5 alone. The console can easily be found for resale or in often overpriced packs from resellers.
The Japanese company announced during the publication the sale of 21.7 million PS5 since it went on sale on November 12, 2020. However, this figure masks a 2% drop in sales of the new console. 2.4 million PS5s were sold between March and the end of June 2022. Despite a slight drop, the console continues to sell very well. In general, during the first quarter of the year, 47 million Sony consoles have been sold worldwide. These sales allow the company to experience a 2% increase in its turnover, i.e. up to $17.3 billion.
Finally, the new Playstation Plus subscriptions lost subscribers. The number of Playstation Network users per month also fell to 102 million players. It would seem that the new formulas are not unanimous among Sony customers.
Sony is thus experiencing a drop in its figures in several sectors. This raises fears of repercussions for consumers in the months to come.
A price increase to fear from the PS5 due to a problem of semiconductors?
As can be seen, the numbers are far from perfect. The pandemic has prevented the semiconductor manufacturing essential to creating a PS5 unit. This shortage has already prompted Sony to raise the prices of its products on Japanese soil. Whether cameras or headphones, all products are impacted by this lack. But that doesn’t seem to be the only explanation. The increase in the cost of raw materials, manufacturing and distribution costs are also factors to be taken into account in this price increase.
With all this in mind, we can legitimately ask ourselves this question: will the PS5 see an upcoming price increase?
During a conference call concerning the group’s financial results, Sony was questioned. It was the financial director Hiroki Totoki who tried to answer the question. His answer is not necessarily comforting: “regarding a potential increase in the PS5, there is nothing specific that I can share with you regarding pricing”. Despite a look ” no comment “this answer is not reassuring because it does not mean no.
Complicated margins to fill for Sony
When we talk about profits in the video game industry, it’s not the consoles that come to cover the margins. They are often sold at cost, or even at a loss. These are the games that allow the company to make a profit. In itself, the sale of PS5 is not a source of profitability, it is mainly used to sell the games behind. In fact, the more consoles sold, the more games are sold. Thus, the benefits are greater. But the number of PS5s sold is not large enough for the sale of games to cover these margins. So, to compensate for these losses, it would make sense to increase the price of the console for the company while the shortage passes.
Additionally, the war in Ukraine could impact chip production costs with an increase in energy prices. The rising price of chips would necessarily have an impact on electronic products including the PS5.
What future for the console?
The increase in different components could lead Sony to raise the selling price of its consoles. However, keep in mind that Sony don’t tell us that the price of the console will increase, but the company does not deny the contrary either. For now, we just have to wait.
In our opinion, it would seem complicated for the company to increase the price of a product like this. This measure would be extremely unpopular and could have an impact on sales. This, of course, does not want the Japanese giant.
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