14 DAY TRIAL // Following the recent announcement that the PlayStation 3 division of Sony is expected to turn a profit by early 2009, the head of Sony, Kaz Hirai, revealed a more ambitious target for the gaming device. In an interview with the Financial Times, in which the manager talked about the future of the gaming console business, he stated that the console should sell more than 150 million units during the course of its lifetime.
For Kaz Hirai, the number is a normal evolution. He mentioned that the first PlayStation gaming console was released in 1994 and it reached lifetime sales of more than 100 million units, while the PlayStation 2 console scored sales of 140 million and the device is still selling well alongside the PlayStation 3.
Hirai added, "I want to try to see if we can exceed the PS2 numbers after nine years, otherwise why are we in this business?".
The Sony made console is an extensive piece of hardware, with a Blu-ray unit included and with the Cell processor costing a lot to develop. So, the console needs to sell more units at a bigger price than rivals Nintendo and Microsoft to recoup the initial investment. The Nintendo Wii is already profitable and the Xbox 360 division has also been recently declared productive by Microsoft, after having posted losses of about 2 billion in 2007.
NPD numbers for June show that the PlayStation 3 registered a jump in sales, mainly because of the fact that Metal Gear Solid 4 was launched. But 2008 in its entirety seems to show the PS3 picking up sales and selling as much as or more than the Xbox 360.
Most industry analysts agree that more than 10 million units can be sold in 2008 and that the PS3 would benefit from a reduction in price, especially after having seen that the Xbox 360 is not getting a price cut in 2008.