Sony says it can not ignore the Switch

[EricHiggin]

Lawlight said:

EricHiggin said:

They can't ignore Switch. Why? Not just that it's selling well, but it may be taking away potential PS4 customers.

PS makes money selling games and subscriptions. In order to sell those items they first need to sell you a PS4.

If people are buying Switch's, and not PS4's, then PS doesn't sell as many games and subscriptions.

An easy way to sell more PS4's, as per BF, is to drop the price, and/or add more value.

Your point about them making a similar product is not very good - Sony doesn’t have the intention of making a handheld ever again. They said so themselves but also they don’t need to. Your point about pricing is sound and, of course, logical but that’s not what his answer was. From the answer the way they’re talking about prevent consumers from migrating from the PS4 to the Switch - by keeping them engaged over longer terms. That’s different from prevents people from choosing a Switch over a PS4 - “we’re working to get more customers paying continuously for content, for example through paid subscription services." 

So you see, there is a difference. Also, the PS4 is having its best selling year despite the Switch release so it’s not about people not buying PS4s but about keeping people on the PS4.

Well If I continued my train of thought, then if cheap PS4's still aren't drawing enough attention away from Switch, then you either launch new hardware or you 'copy' the hardware giving your existing hardware a problem. Wouldn't be the first time.

What is talked about is selling consoles, games, and services. PSN service requires a PS device. No PS device, no service. The more PS devices you own, the more games and subscriptions you are likely to buy. If people like someone else's hardware better, and your sales drop, you don't just constantly jack up the price of your service. That works, but for only so long. Just look at XB1 and all the bundles and price drops and new hardware over the years.

Shareholders don't care all that much about how stable your existing customer base is. It matters, but it's not what they crave. They care more about how much your customer base is going to continue to grow. If Switch is getting in the way, PS needs to let the shareholders know they have an answer.