PlayStation 6: Sony says future platforms ‘top of mind’, exploring ‘new and enhanced’ ways to play

PlayStation has discussed its future console strategy and said it’s committed to “exploring a new and enhanced way for players” to engage with games, and that the future of the platform is “top of mind”.

Sony Interactive Entertainment‘s new president and CEO, Hideaki Nishino, was asked during a business segment meeting about the future of PlayStation console hardware, and whether it could be superseded by cloud gaming.

Nishino emphasized that PlayStation now has multiple generations of experience providing players with cloud-based gameplay, and stated that while he views it as a viable option for players, he believes overall demand remains for the “local execution” of games.

“Cloud streaming is progressing well from a technical standpoint, as we have demonstrated with [our] offerings, but end-to-end network stability is not in our control,” Nishino said. “And the higher cost per playtime compared to the traditional console model remains a challenge.

“Cloud gaming is increasingly providing an additional option for players to access content, but our belief is that the majority of players continue to want to experience gaming through local execution without dependency on network conditions. And PS5 and PS5 Pro have validated this thesis, I believe.”

The CEO went on to reference how Sony’s console business has evolved into a “multi-faceted platform”, with a significant portion of its 124 million monthly active users still playing on PlayStation 4.

“We now have a large ecosystem of highly engaged players across both the PlayStation 5 and the PlayStation 4 generations. So naturally, therefore, there’s a huge interest in our next generation console strategy,” he said.

“While we cannot share further details at this stage, the future of the platform is top of mind. We are committed to exploring a new and enhanced way for players to engage with our content and services.”

According to documents published as part of the court battle over Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition, Sony doesn’t expect to launch its next-gen console until 2028 at the earliest. Sony has reportedly contracted AMD to design and fabricate the PlayStation 6’s chip, due to the company’s prioritisation of backwards compatibility.

SIE’s SVP of finance and corporate development, Lynn Azar, was then asked in Friday’s business segment interview if Sony expects to see an impact on profits in the year its next console launches, as has been typical with past consoles.

Azar again emphasized the point that Sony’s players are now engaged across multiple platforms, including PS4, PS5 and PC, and noted that the vast majority of its revenue now comes from subscriptions and microtransactions, which should provide protection during any future platform migration.

“As Nishino-san mentioned, we’re still exploring what the future of our platform would look like. So, therefore, whilst we cannot provide any further guidance on operating income in future years, I’d like to re-emphasize that our financial profile as a business has evolved in line with our strategy.

“So, we’ve reduced traditional cyclicality, as you describe it, by establishing a large ecosystem of players across both the PS5 and PS4 generations, which provides recurring revenues.

“So, this has driven overall high and stable level of spend on content and services, which, by the way, now constitute over two-thirds of our revenue, providing a consistent, predictable, and profitable base of our revenue.”

Azar added: “PS5 represents our most engaged players, with the highest spend per player versus prior generations. Our PS4 players as well are still active and spending as well.

“So, by providing players with increasing options of how to access the platform, we’re able to better target the different play patterns and monetization profiles of different customer segments. And as we continue to drive a multi-generational ecosystem into the future, we’ll provide new ways for players to access the platform and experience our content and services.”