Sony says it doesn’t plan to ‘sell hardware at significant losses’ but is ‘monitoring the market’ with PS6 in mind

Sony has addressed the ongoing increase in component costs, saying it doesn’t intend to sell hardware at a loss but is monitoring the market.

During a Q&A session held at a recent meeting based around the company’s Game & Network Services division, one attendee asked Sony executives to provide an update on their current thinking regarding hardware pricing and profitability.

Specifically referring to “the next generation platfom”, the attendee asked the execs whether it was “reasonable to assume that your pricing will continue to prioritize profitability of the hardware, as it does today”.

The official answer given by Sony’s transcript from the Q&A noted that it considers its hardware to be one of the most important parts of the gaming experience, and that it wants to make sure users recognise the value offered by its hardware.

It also stated that the company doesn’t plan to sell hardware at a loss as a matter of principle, but that it’s currently monitoring the market situation.

“First, we regard hardware as the base for providing the gaming experience, and by offering products such as the PlayStation Portal Remote Player (PS Portal), we aim to provide experiences tailored to users’ play styles beyond the living room, which has traditionally been considered the primary usage environment,” Sony replied.

“As for pricing, it is not realistic for us to absorb all component cost increases, and we have already implemented some price increases outside Japan. At present, however, sales are proceeding as planned, and we do not believe this has led to a decline in customer demand.

“As a principle, we do not intend to sell hardware at significant losses. At the same time, we are carefully monitoring the market and continuing to evaluate our approach. We believe it is important for us to make every effort to ensure that customers fully understand the value we provide in relation to pricing.”

The ongoing shortage of RAM and storage – and the drastic increase in costs that have resulted in it – have already seen numerous hardware price increases not just for Sony, but for Microsoft, Nintendo, Apple and others. Last week Microsoft raised the price of Xbox consoles again, while Valve announced that the price of its Steam Machine was significantly more than it had previously planned.

Last month Sony president and CEO Hiroki Totoki said the company hadn’t yet decided when it’s going to release the PlayStation 6, or what its price will be.

“We have not yet decided on at what timing we will launch the new console, or at what prices,” Totoki said last month, via Sony’s translator. “So we would like to really observe and follow the situation.

“Looking at the current circumstances, the memory price is also expected to be very high FY 2027, because there will still be a shortage of supply. So under that assumption, we must think carefully what we will do.”

He also noted that the number of active users on PlayStation’s platforms continues to grow, “so it’s not that the demand has gone down,” implying Sony has time to think about its strategy for the next generation.

Analysts reacted to the price of the Steam Machine last week by debating what it meant for PlayStation 6 and Xbox Project Helix launch prices, with some warning they could pass the four-digit mark.

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, Aldora CEO Joost van Dreunen said he believed it was certain, warning: “At this rate, the next generation may not even release until 2028, and when it does, north of a grand is the floor. Even existing devices are getting marked up.”

Newzoo market intelligence director Manu Rosier, meanwhile, suggested that while there may be versions of each console that do cost more than $1,000, he believes there will still be a base model costing three digits – even if that means $999 – because of the psychological effect a four-digit price has on customers.