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Forums - Sony Discussion - [Opinion] Why Sony Should Exit The Console Hardware Business

SvennoJ on 13 October 2012
VGKing said:

Whoever wrote that article seems to overlook the fact that the sales of 3rd party games is MUCH larger than that of 1st party games on the PS3.
So any increase in 1st party sales on Xbox 720/Wii U would be offset by the loss of all the profits they are gaining from the 3rd party games. PS3 should be profitable by now, so those are profits they won't have. PSP is profitable and PS2 is still selling. 

Playstation is an iconic brand. Without Playstation, millions and millions of people would never have played any games. Sony brings affordable gaming to low-income families in 3rd world countries with the PS2. Would Microsoft ever do that? Nintendo? No. Sony cares about the gamer.

BTW, PS4 could easily be sold at a profit from Day 1. Sony could just make a console equal in power to a Wii U, and it would sell purely based on better 3rd party support, PSN and brand recognition.

1st paragraph Spot on.
3rd paragraph Maybe they could, they never would. It would lose them the hardcore crowd for sure.
2nd paragraph What are you smoking? Have you seen the prices of ps2s in what you call 3rd world countries? Out of care? lol.



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VicViper on 13 October 2012
VGKing said:

Stay mad bro. Look at how fast Nintendo abandoned the DS and how they let the Wii(once king) fall so quickly.
Sure, as hardcore gamers we want new hardware, but not everyone can afford it. This isn't just about 3rd world countries, even in America hundreds of millions of people live from paycheck to paycheck. Gaming is a luxury to  many.

Let's see if Nintendo is still selling the Wii or DS 5 years from now. We'll see.

Mad, haha, I was really laughing at such naiveness - seriously, the best (worst) I've seen here on gamrconnect.

It's always about money, but even that has some levels. Developers for example think about money all the time (like 100%), but also about making something new and great for gamers.

But to think a Sony exec (the worst* level of capitalist) selling PS2s in India is doing so because he wants to bring gaming to to the poor? Sorry, that's too much!

BTW, hahaha, you can start praising SEGA, cause Master Systems are sold here in brazil to this day!

*not criticizing this posture.



fauzman on 13 October 2012
RolStoppable said:
CChaos said:
I've read the article twice now and...I think the biggest problem is I don't think I'm able to figure out what he's getting at. Sure, the games would sell if they were all made multi-platform, but I can't really see them making as much money as would offset the loss of hardware income. I mean, even thinking about that doesn't make a tonne of sense, especially with the Super Slim and what I imagine is a better margin for the PS3.

Is he trying to say that if Sony cut hardware out of the mix, it'd somehow make the company profitable again directly through games? Cause, if so, that's one of the most bizarre things I've heard in a while.

Sony has traditionally been using the razor and blades model (selling hardware at a loss, making the money back on software), so there isn't much hardware income to speak of. The PS3 lost billions on hardware over its lifetime, so that's what the suggestion to go software-only is based on.

You are wrong. Sony dont make consoles so that they can make back money on the software. They sell a console at launch at a loss and make that money back by selling the later SKUs at a profit (since the price of parts falls considerably over the years). They did this very successfully for both the psx and ps2. However, with the ps3 they lost so much money in the initial launch years that they probably wont make back the money they lost by the end of the ps3's lifetime. But this is slightly different from them selling hardware and just expecting software to cover for it. 

Also, considering the position sony are in, the ps4 will probably be sold at a profit or very close to manufacture cost to reduce/eliminate any losses from the get-go (or at least that is what indications are). So I dont think they will do as badly as this gen.  



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MDMAlliance on 13 October 2012

I don't think Sony should drop from the console business as a consumer because it is nice seeing other consoles and competition out there that isn't an iOS device.



Ganoncrotch on 13 October 2012
VGKing said:
VicViper said:
VGKing said:

Whoever wrote that article seems to overlook the fact that the sales of 3rd party games is MUCH larger than that of 1st party games on the PS3.
So any increase in 1st party sales on Xbox 720/Wii U would be offset by the loss of all the profits they are gaining from the 3rd party games. PS3 should be profitable by now, so those are profits they won't have. PSP is profitable and PS2 is still selling. 

Playstation is an iconic brand. Without Playstation, millions and millions of people would never have played any games. Sony brings affordable gaming to low-income families in 3rd world countries with the PS2. Would Microsoft ever do that? Nintendo? No. Sony cares about the gamer.

BTW, PS4 could easily be sold at a profit from Day 1. Sony could just make a console equal in power to a Wii U, and it would sell purely based on better 3rd party support, PSN and brand recognition.


Yeah, they do that based on care!

Seriously laughing here!

Stay mad bro. Look at how fast Nintendo abandoned the DS and how they let the Wii(once king) fall so quickly.
Sure, as hardcore gamers we want new hardware, but not everyone can afford it. This isn't just about 3rd world countries, even in America hundreds of millions of people live from paycheck to paycheck. Gaming is a luxury to  many.

Let's see if Nintendo is still selling the Wii or DS 5 years from now. We'll see.


I'm almost at a loss for words, you think they had a business meeting where they discussed how much budget to set aside for caring for people in lesser off states? and then shipped a shipping container full of 12 year old hardware from a warehouse to donate to those people? (for money) I don't think anyone is under the illusion that the company they like the most in gaming doesn't things out of the goodness of their heart? surely?



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Ji99saw on 13 October 2012
VGKing said:
No, Sony leaving the hardware business WOULD NOT benefit gamers. There is a reason I stuck with PS3 this generation.

1a. I don't like Microsofts business practices.
b. They are new at making hardware, hence the RROD epidemic.

2a. I'm not too fond of Nintendo. In fact they are simply too Japanese for my taste.(Keep in mind that I am a big fan of anime)
b. Nintendo makes "good enough" hardware marketed through gimmicky controls.
c. Their focus is clearly on kids and families which leads them to make stupid decision like Friend Codes.

So why do I support Sony?
1. They make amazing state-of-the=art hardware.
2. They have the amazing 1st party studios to show it off.
3. They care about the gamer. Free PSN being a prime example.(Free online gaming is a RIGHT, not a privilege)

Anyway if you look at the sales charts, the highest selling games on PS3 are actually 3rd party. If Sony didn't make the hardware they publish their games on, they would make a lot less money. I'm not even mentioning the fact that Microsoft and Nintendo are not going to play nice with Sony if they ever became multiplatform. Sony would get crushed. A game like Uncharted would never sell on a Nintendo console, and a game like Killzone would be overshadowed by Halo.

If Sony could make as much as Microsoft and charge for online they would do it, don't dare think they wouldn't, if it were as you say PS+ would not even exist



Without order nothing can exist - without chaos nothing can evolve.

"I don't debate, I just give you that work"- Ji99saw

deskpro2k3 on 13 October 2012
Ji99saw said:
VGKing said:
No, Sony leaving the hardware business WOULD NOT benefit gamers. There is a reason I stuck with PS3 this generation.

1a. I don't like Microsofts business practices.
b. They are new at making hardware, hence the RROD epidemic.

2a. I'm not too fond of Nintendo. In fact they are simply too Japanese for my taste.(Keep in mind that I am a big fan of anime)
b. Nintendo makes "good enough" hardware marketed through gimmicky controls.
c. Their focus is clearly on kids and families which leads them to make stupid decision like Friend Codes.

So why do I support Sony?
1. They make amazing state-of-the=art hardware.
2. They have the amazing 1st party studios to show it off.
3. They care about the gamer. Free PSN being a prime example.(Free online gaming is a RIGHT, not a privilege)

Anyway if you look at the sales charts, the highest selling games on PS3 are actually 3rd party. If Sony didn't make the hardware they publish their games on, they would make a lot less money. I'm not even mentioning the fact that Microsoft and Nintendo are not going to play nice with Sony if they ever became multiplatform. Sony would get crushed. A game like Uncharted would never sell on a Nintendo console, and a game like Killzone would be overshadowed by Halo.

If Sony could make as much as Microsoft and charge for online they would do it, don't dare think they wouldn't, if it were as you say PS+ would not even exist

You are wrong.
PS+ is an option, it is not mandatory.



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Ji99saw on 13 October 2012
deskpro2k3 said:
Ji99saw said:
VGKing said:
No, Sony leaving the hardware business WOULD NOT benefit gamers. There is a reason I stuck with PS3 this generation.

1a. I don't like Microsofts business practices.
b. They are new at making hardware, hence the RROD epidemic.

2a. I'm not too fond of Nintendo. In fact they are simply too Japanese for my taste.(Keep in mind that I am a big fan of anime)
b. Nintendo makes "good enough" hardware marketed through gimmicky controls.
c. Their focus is clearly on kids and families which leads them to make stupid decision like Friend Codes.

So why do I support Sony?
1. They make amazing state-of-the=art hardware.
2. They have the amazing 1st party studios to show it off.
3. They care about the gamer. Free PSN being a prime example.(Free online gaming is a RIGHT, not a privilege)

Anyway if you look at the sales charts, the highest selling games on PS3 are actually 3rd party. If Sony didn't make the hardware they publish their games on, they would make a lot less money. I'm not even mentioning the fact that Microsoft and Nintendo are not going to play nice with Sony if they ever became multiplatform. Sony would get crushed. A game like Uncharted would never sell on a Nintendo console, and a game like Killzone would be overshadowed by Halo.

If Sony could make as much as Microsoft and charge for online they would do it, don't dare think they wouldn't, if it were as you say PS+ would not even exist

You are wrong.
PS+ is an option, it is not mandatory.


I'm not wrong, I'm aware PS+ is an option but it would not exist Sony did not want to monetize their online to make money from gamers. If they were not influenced by XBL and truly cared about the gamers it would not exist and the perks would just be given away. The fact that PS+ exist is because of XBL printing money off subscriptions



Without order nothing can exist - without chaos nothing can evolve.

"I don't debate, I just give you that work"- Ji99saw

menx64 on 13 October 2012
VGKing said:
RolStoppable said:
CChaos said:
I've read the article twice now and...I think the biggest problem is I don't think I'm able to figure out what he's getting at. Sure, the games would sell if they were all made multi-platform, but I can't really see them making as much money as would offset the loss of hardware income. I mean, even thinking about that doesn't make a tonne of sense, especially with the Super Slim and what I imagine is a better margin for the PS3.

Is he trying to say that if Sony cut hardware out of the mix, it'd somehow make the company profitable again directly through games? Cause, if so, that's one of the most bizarre things I've heard in a while.

Sony has traditionally been using the razor and blades model (selling hardware at a loss, making the money back on software), so there isn't much hardware income to speak of. The PS3 lost billions on hardware over its lifetime, so that's what the suggestion to go software-only is based on.

Whoever wrote that article seems to overlook the fact that the sales of 3rd party games is MUCH larger than that of 1st party games on the PS3.
So any increase in 1st party sales on Xbox 720/Wii U would be offset by the loss of all the profits they are gaining from the 3rd party games. PS3 should be profitable by now, so those are profits they won't have. PSP is profitable and PS2 is still selling. 

Playstation is an iconic brand. Without Playstation, millions and millions of people would never have played any games. Sony brings affordable gaming to low-income families in 3rd world countries with the PS2. Would Microsoft ever do that? Nintendo? No. Sony cares about the gamer.

BTW, PS4 could easily be sold at a profit from Day 1. Sony could just make a console equal in power to a Wii U, and it would sell purely based on better 3rd party support, PSN and brand recognition.


I am sorry to burst your bubble my friend, but a PS2 in my country is still  >$200 with one controller and maybe a game (fifa or pes normally) + $50 controllers... No that the other console manufactures care too much though, 

for instance: x360  > $550/$600, PS3 > $360, wii > $220, psp > $200, ds lite> $150 3ds> $250

and games, ps3/360 > $80, wii > $60, ds,psp,3ds, ps2 > $55-60



Menx64

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usrevenge on 13 October 2012

inb4 buthurt fans... awe too late =(
sony leaving would be bad because MS's main competitor would be out, and then MS would simply be useless and make even less games then that do now.