I have always been claiming the same (and now as well in that strongest brand thread). Without PS, gaming would still be a fringe hobby catering only to children and hardcore hobbyists, and we would probably have seen a huge decline by the mid 2000s. Sony significantly expanded the market, brought it to be of mainstream relevance, and Microsoft helped significantly to further expand it to online interactions, thus taking it out of the child's bedroom/hobbyist's basement and bringing it to the living rooms worldwide.