If the Sony group as a whole is posting increased results, once is not custom because video games are not necessarily its undeniable locomotive, at least not with regard to profits which are down sharply by 37 % over last year at PlayStation, mainly due to lower game sales and higher development costs, despite a slight improvement in console sales. It must be said that the spring was not really lively in terms of big releases, which is felt especially on physical sales close to dying.
Specifically, 47.1 million PlayStation games were sold between April and June 2022, including 6.4 million PlayStation Studios games. This is significantly less than last year in the same quarter (63.6 million games, including 10.5 million PlayStation Studios games). Significantly, the digital ratio reached 79%, the fault of physical sales which continue to wither. Over the three-month period, sales of boxed games represent only 122 million euros, compared to 743 million euros for dematerialized sales and 1.36 billion euros for in-game purchases (free-to- play, additional content, extensions).
The only category on the rise compared to last year, subscriptions represent 784 million euros. However, the launch of the new PlayStation Plus formulas has not yet had an impact on the subscriber base, which was 47.3 million at the end of June (the record remains at 48 million). Sony also recorded 102 million active users at the end of June, down from 106 million users at the end of March. Sony deplores this drop in commitment, which it puts in particular on the account of the disappearance of sanitary measures in the main markets.
PS5: the comeback will wait
In terms of games and subscriptions, growth is therefore clearly not there at the moment, but what about the progression of the installed base of the PS5? Between April and June 2022, Sony therefore distributed (and sold) 2.4 million PS5s, which is a little better than last year (2.3 million) but not as much as the manufacturer hoped to produce. As a result, the PS5 is falling behind the PS4, which was 2.9 million at the same stage of its existence. Remember that Sony aims to sell 18 million PS5s over the fiscal year and must therefore release at least another 15.6 million machines from its factories between July 2022 and March 2023.
As of June 30, 2022, there are 21.7 million PS5s worldwide, compared to 25.3 million PS4s at the same stage, a difference of 3.6 million. Speaking of the PS4, a page has turned for good since Sony has stopped communicating distribution figures. The console’s final score will therefore remain stuck at “over 117 million” as of March 31, 2022 in the company’s public records. Thanks for everything, baby.
For the full fiscal year, PlayStation has lowered some targets due to the acquisition of Bungie which was finalized much earlier than expected. PlayStation expects record annual revenue of 26.6 billion euros and operating profit of 1.8 billion euros. The manufacturer initially bet on a profit of 2.2 billion euros but now takes into account the costs generated by the integration of Bungie as well as other factors (unfavorable exchange rates, drop in sales of third-party games and purchases in Game).