Japan’s discounted PS5 is a strategic investment, says Sony CEO Hideaki Nishino

The president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment has explained that its Japan-only PS5 is selling at a loss in an attempt to grow its audience in Japan.

In November 2025 the company announced a special Japan-only PlayStation 5 Digital Edition, which is sold at a discounted price of ¥55,000 ($340).

Given that Sony recently announced widespread price increases for its consoles which now see the region-free PS5 Digital Edition priced at ¥89,980 ($555) in Japan, the region-locked version – which has stayed at the same price – now appears even more heavily discounted, at around 40% cheaper.

In a new interview with Famitsu, SIE president and CEO Hideaki Nishino was asked how Sony could possibly manage to sell the Japan-only edition of the console at such a comparatively low price when the current economic landscape and surge in component costs must mean it’s selling at a loss.

Nishino replied that the Japan-only version was introduced because the company noticed players from around the world were taking advantage of the weak yen by importing region-free PS5 consoles from Japan instead of buying them in their own country.

By selling the console at a heavily subsidized price and region locking it to Japan, Sony hoped to stop players importing it from other countries, but also grow the PlayStation userbase in Japan, a country where the Nintendo Switch has dominated in recent years.

“We were aware that, due to exchange rate fluctuations, there was a trend of PS5 consoles being exported from Japan to overseas markets,” Nishino explained (via machine translation). “Given this situation, we decided that it was crucial to ensure that the PS5 was delivered properly to our Japanese customers.

“While ‘countermeasure’ may not be the best term to use, we believe that by making a Japanese-only model limited to Japanese accounts, we were able to set a unique price for Japanese market. By offering a more affordable price compared to the multi-language Digital Edition, we hope to further revitalize the Japanese gaming community and market, which is a key market for us.”

Regarding selling the console at a loss, Nishino added: “We consider the PS5 Digital Edition Japanese-only model a strategic investment. While we won’t disclose specific figures, we plan to recoup the costs across our entire business operations. Although the business situation differs from that in overseas markets, we hope you understand that this is an important and necessary investment for the Japanese market.”

When asked if that meant Sony placed more importance on the Japanese market than others, Nishino replied that Sony wants to see PlayStation do well in all markets, and it’s currently focusing more on Japan because it wants to see growth there.

“Because we operate globally, we don’t prioritize or downplay any particular market,” he explained. “We strategically consider how to allocate funds within the overall balance, and as part of that, we are actively investing in Japan because we want to further increase the number of PlayStation users there.”

Last year’s decision to sell a discounted Japan-only PS5 Digital may have been somewhat influenced by comments made by Capcom president Haruhito Tsujimoto, who partly blamed Monster Hunter Wilds’ poor sales momentum on the price of PlayStation 5 consoles, which he claimed in an interview was providing a barrier to entry for younger players in particular.

“The console costs around ¥80,000 ($540),” he told Nikkei in September 2005. “Factoring in the cost of software and monthly subscriptions, it comes to around ¥100,000 ($675) at the time of purchase. This is not an easily affordable price, especially for younger generations. This situation is not limited to Japan, but is similar overseas.”