"Isn't the fact that the PS Vita is selling so poorly BECAUSE of how Sony isn't putting any more first party games on it?"

I don't think that's true. At least, not in the way you mean.

Sony could put Uncharted and Killzone games on the Vita until the end of time and it would make no difference. It simply is not going to sell to that demographic. The people who buy those types of games are people who own smart phones and home consoles and tablet computers.

The main difference between the Vita and the 3DS is, basically, Pokemon. It appeals to kids, which is absolutely vital in the west, and it's a game that's unique to handhelds. My principle criticism of Sony would be that they did not try hard enough to develop a counter to that. You can't sell in the west without an IP that pulls in children.

In Japan, of course, the "Sony doesn't support the Vita" line falls flat, as their strategy is to bring in third-party efforts and it's working pretty well. Works from western studios won't make any difference so moving them to the PS4 makes all the sense in the world.

Extra Credits did a good video that sums up my thoughts pretty nicely on the topic. I posted in another thread yesterday that the Vita failed because Sony tried too hard to make the tech cutting edge. When the Vita is marketed as a PS3 Portable, the games need to show it. But third parties aren't going to take a risk early on on a game that needs a high budget, especially when they can just default to a much cheaper handheld with a higher install base. So they wait. And then gamers see a lack of games that actually prove the Vita is a PS3 Portable as initially promised, and they don't be in. And it cycles like that forever, until Sony just packs it in as a peripheral for the PS4

After a while you have to cut your loses. How long do you think it's fine to keep trying, till you throw in the towel? 1 year? 5 years? They did try for the first few years. People didn't care either way. Nothing is really going to change that. Think about it from another perspective. Take a movie. First movie in a series was great. Second movie was really bad. Most people go in this direction: screw this franchise.

Third movie is made. Everyone involved, threw endless love and care. It's a flawless story. 100% better than the second. And it fails. Why? No one cared to look at it. All the complaints like cell phone plan, memory cards, port machine. That all sticks in peoples mind. Then everyone go meh. Everyone here is guilty of this mentality, at some point.

I do it. EA ruined Sims 4 at launch. I don't give two shits about the franchise anymore. But I do know they put back in most of all the missing stuff everyone bitched about. I still don't buy it. So it stays as a damaged series. This is a repeating human pattern. Companies know the signs. So Sony is now keeping the Vita alive. And just throws bones at it. When it doesn't require a lot of money/work. They also don't have that a lot of unique line of games. Because of the portstation. Would you buy the 3DS, if the games you liked, where on Wii U? Unless you really you move arround a lot, no.

As for JPN support being better. A lot of factors. It's doing better compared to other countries. The percent considered okay in JPN, is lower than the US. The price was more accepted from the start. Remember their stuff is extremely expensive. Loyalty from JPN people/publishers could be higher. Cheaper prices to make games. Due to local factor. Etc.

What franchises do they have that would increase sales? Theyre not nintendo, they don't have the Ip pulling power to being people to a dedicated handheld.

The Vita is dead. No matter what Sony does, it will probably never be able to do well.

I have one, and don't even have time to play the PS+ freebies on it. I just download them and let them pile up, til i finally get time to play them. People aren't buying the system, so it really doesn't make sense for them to spend alot of money supporting it.

It came out and the sales didn't really go anywhere. Why beat a dead horse? When they were giving it full support there wasn't much consumer interest so they moved on. Not that different from what Nintendo is doing with the Wii U just fully pulling support instead of attempting to keep a happy consumer base. These aren't easy to keep afloat and profitable and it ends up being a decision each company has to make with systems that sell this abysmally.

I think there is a really big reason that people haven't mentioned yet.

Sony doesn't want their handheld to be a one off, they want it to be a line of successive systems (like the PS). I think that 10 years out Sony doesn't see handhelds being a thing anymore, getting eaten by phones and tablets. If Sony thought that the SUCCESSOR to the Vita would grab more market share, they would put more effort into the system. But, I don't think they see that happening, so they don't see a point in trying to push the Vita.

I think at present the priority is getting their heavy hitters onto PS4.  Polyphony should in no way split their resources to making a Vita game, mainly because it would be a different engine than the PS4 one (It's hard to scale when the resource disparity is that large).  Same with GoW, though LBP wouldn't really pose an issue, I don't think.  

After GT7 and GoW are finished, sure, dedicated folks to it, but right now the PS4 is leading Sony's charge, no reason to lose sight of that, to prop up something that's kind of a money pit.  Don't get me wrong, the Vita is a great idea, and I like the tech myself...but, a handful of people on boards, don't equal a profitable business model.

The PSVita sales install base of Asia vs what it has sold through in the west is not just one of the problems, its also Smartphones, Tablets and west 3rd party publishers like Rockstar games making GTA: III, Vice City, and San Andreas for Android & iOS , but yet not ported to the PSVita or the 3DS..its clear direction of Sony Mobile I see that investment into remote play , playstation Now and using an existing Bluetooth game pad like a dual shock has in effect made it more appealing t just make playstation network services and making the default control pad hook up to be a dual shock for Mobile smartphones and tablets.

I think one of the things is many consumers do not want a physical control game pad bulking up the hadheld device! While physical controls that are built in are nice and making them  built into their smartphone from the get go is handy for gaming it does limit you handheld target market, many consumers today they want it thin and light and less bulky, adding in a case on top just increases the size and weight even more.

The trade off of bulky vs thin is one of the core reasons why handhelds today I think are just not as general consumer to be a target , and to grow in such a crowded market that is one of the things that can limit your handheld device. In the market. By having the controller option separate , but still being the standard controller gamers would not really care if you have to use external, if that means a better control option. While other consumers may not care , but have the handheld being thin long with good gaming included means they can still hook up a controller if they feel the need to.

I think Sony looks at that going where third party publishers and developers are going any way is better off than trying to bolster a dedicated handheld where its market share % chance is slim to none.

Where as in Mobile smartphones , Sony can sell software and services to a much larger audience and with lower investment costs included.

The writing is on the wall, and i think Sony seems to get the message.