After some thought on this, I think Sony might opt for a mixed approach, and perhaps we should interpret these statements differently.
Let me explain.
A mixed strategy, which could involve:
- on the hardware side, following Nintendo's strategy.
They no longer want to rely solely on hardware sales, so future devices would aim to retain the existing user base while simultaneously attracting new players. In this context, they would no longer sell consoles at a loss, ensuring adequate profit margins, and at the same time they would no longer have the need to chase technology by pushing it to the max, keeping the consumer price in check. In other words "Those who just want an easy way to play, with an optimized PS experience can buy our console; for everyone else, our games will be playable at maximum settings on PC (PS account/store)." I would expect first party mid/low budget exclusive games on console, high budget games on console and PC.
- on the software side, following Microsoft's strategy.
They want to push their ecosystem and PlayStation as a platform accessible to everyone: in this scenario, they could continue to publish multiplayer/live service titles on as many systems as possible (including Xbox and Switch), but at the same time promote the PlayStation platform on PC, perhaps with their own dedicated App Store that can be accessed via a PlayStation Network account (including Plus subscription services) to play the entire catalog, past, present, and future... and they're already (partially) doing so.
If you think about it, it wouldn't be a bad strategy. On the one hand, they could achieve better margins on hardware, lower production costs on an adequate but not excessive technical level. On the other, they could sell much more software, at all levels, guaranteeing margins even for larger or riskier productions.
PlayStation brand will be safe, including the console segment which would simply become an entry point for new users.
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