KBG29 said:
The way I see it the PS4 and XBO should be that disruptive force. Sony and Microsoft can not possibly be blind enough to not see what smartphones and owning there own marketplace has done for Apple and Google. Smartphones got where they are because they are a device everyone needs now days, not just because they are a phone, but due to having atleast some app that will sway the majority of consumers. Not to mention they are almost the simplist devices to use. Microsoft and Sony have the boxes, they have the market places, and all they have to do is expand, expand, expand. Just like google, and apple, let the garage devs build all of these little apps. Let them build up a very useful tool kit that keeps people using their device every waking hour. Take the shared profits from that to fund bigger internal projects that will draw even more consumers. I think Sony has already put themselves in position to make a huge move in the industry. PSN is the vehical that can lead them to Apple and Googler like success, thanks in a huge part to PlayStation Vue. There are over 200M cable boxes in the US, and they are estimating over 320M worldwide buy this year (2015). With PlayStation Vue, and PSN Sony can put PS4 right into the winning model that built cable companies, and the smart phone buisness. Contracts and Bundles. If Sony can turn PSN into a machine that builds services and PlayStations, they can bust this industry wide open. Basic plans with PS Vue only could get people walking out the door with an up front cost of $199.99 for a two year contract in a matter of months. Expanded Plans could see PS Vue, PS Music, PS Now, and PS+ for two years, and walk out with a with a PS4 for zero down. Then you can have deals for multiple PS4's, a PS4 and 3 PSTV units, all kinds of ways to give people service throught the whole house. That is major maket disruption. That changes the game. And, that is how the industry continues to grow, and Sony catapults itself back into the battle with Apple, Google, Micosoft, and Samsung.
On another note. The Above + PlayStation Phone is how they attack the mobile industry, and bring mobile gaming back to life. |
Sony is certainly doing some interesting this with PlayStation Vue and PlayStation Now, but they'll need to invest a lot in marketing and get people to try them, and figure how to beat the stranglehold that Cable Companies have in Cable TV and Internet, because they can fuck Sony's plan if they wish to, which they probably do.
Your idea of the PlayStation Services contracts is a great one, I think one of the main reasons why Smartphones are so successful is because people think they're paying less that they're actually paying, perception is extremely powerful. If that wasn't the case people would still seek Smartphones but they wouldn't go for top of the line, neither would they renew yearly or every 2 years like now, therefore sales wouldn't be nearly as big as they're now. On the other hand consoles would never be as big as phones though, but maybe they could be much bigger than they're now, if you can attach a lot of services and apps to them.
But then comes the part of "let the garage devs build all of these little apps. Let them build up a very useful tool kit that keeps people using their device every waking hour." Sony is terribly obtuse at this, just look at the PSVITA, the homebrew scene of that console is dedicated only to allow emulation and some little nice apps in that platform. You can't pirate VITA games, nor PS1 games really (you can but it's problematic and limited), you could only pirate PSP games, yet everytime a new exploit is released, Sony closes it down in 48 hours or less, to accomplish what exactly, how much profits could they possibly receive from PSP games.
Remember you can easily emulate PSP on your PC or Android device, so what's the point of such a closed platform, letting it more open would probably be more beneficial for their bottom line, but they're scared shitless of pirates and dedicate a disproportionate amount of resources to prevent it against their own interest. You think Google couldn't try to close their platform a lot more, but they won't do it because it's not beneficial for them, see they don't care you can emulate a PSP on your Android, Sony cares a lot that you can emulate a GBA, SNES, NDS, N64, Sega Genesis, Atari 7800, Game Gear or even an Amiga on their platform. On the other hand Google just makes sure their platform secure enough so the content creators feel safe enough, Sony goes overboard with this against their own interests.
About the PlayStation Phone, I think that boat sailed long ago. In theory it should work, I mean people really don't use their Smartphones as phones anyways, so even the ergonomics shouldn't matter so much, if it's ergonomic enough as Portable Console it should work as a Smartphone, they could also release with Bluetooth Earbuds for the phone calling and problem solved. But would Sony let it be open enough to compete with other Smartphones, be it via Android or their own OS with better integration with the rest of PlayStation devices, this I don't see it, I don't think Sony Mobile division is capable of this.
