PlayStation’s Focus Has Shifted From Game Sales to Actual Play Time, Sony Says

Sony has said that due to changes in consumer behavior during the PS4 era, PlayStation‘s focus has shifted to increasing play time on the PS5 rather than increasing the number of games sold. This isn’t to say that there’s no emphasis on the number of software units sold, but that Sony wants to improve profits via player investment into the PlayStation ecosystem.

Are PS5 players buying less games than ever before?

Sony said that its business model previously focused on increasing software units sold in conjunction with hardware units sold. However, there was a “transition” during the PS4 era where players presumably purchased fewer new games but spent more time on the console. Sony says that it managed to “significantly” improve profits as a result, and wants to capitalize on this trend going forward.

“The business model up to and including the PlayStation 3 was focused on increasing the number of software units sold in relation to newly sold hardware for each console generation,” said SIE chairman Hiroki Totoki. “After a transition period during the PS4 generation, the PS5 model has shifted to one where playtime on the platform has increased due to expansion of the user community beyond console generations.”

Totoki added that the PS5 has achieved more “stable” profit growth as a result of the PS4 install base, which saw players carry libraries across console generations.

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