Business analysis: PlayStation 3 in a race against time

In an exclusive coverage by Reuters, Kiyoshi Takenaka drew up an analysis of the PlayStation 3’s progress since its launch, and came to the conclusion that everything is drawing up perfectly for Sony‘s next-gen console except for one thing: time.

While Phil Harrison is confident about the decade-long lifespan of the PlayStation 3, Takenaka came to the conclusion that the successor to the PlayStation 2 could learn a few lessons from its ancestor’s success.

The PS2 also suffered a lacking start back in 2000, but then rose to over 100 million units sold eventually, meeting expectations of the first generation PlayStation. Analytically, all Sony needs to do is to install a stable hardware base around the world, even if they aren’t the first.

Being first only gives the competition an edge for a short time span, until a late bloomer draws in the rest of the world into its embrace. The revenue that Sony will earn, after all, is from the royalties on the software that will be sold for the console. So the final effect turns into a “chicken produces egg produces chicken produces egg” cycle that will eventually bring the console to eventual success.

As the console sales rise, more developers bring in more games. The more games that come out, the more people buy consoles for the games. The more consoles that are sold again, the more games come out. It’s pretty general, but it is nothing less than feasible. With low-price strategies aside, the only enemy of Sony is time.

With the purchases of full HD TV sets rising since late 2006, America has been gearing up for the next-gen entertainment age. But the question of when the sales spike up for that special game still remains elusive. Whether it will come this year, next year or in the ten-year period as claimed by Sony’s Harrison, most other market analysts pointed at the years before 2010. It’s just a matter of time.

Via Reuters

In an exclusive coverage by Reuters, Kiyoshi Takenaka drew up an analysis of the PlayStation 3’s progress since its launch, and came to the conclusion that everything is drawing up perfectly for Sony‘s next-gen console except for one thing: time.

While Phil Harrison is confident about the decade-long lifespan of the PlayStation 3, Takenaka came to the conclusion that the successor to the PlayStation 2 could learn a few lessons from its ancestor’s success.

The PS2 also suffered a lacking start back in 2000, but then rose to over 100 million units sold eventually, meeting expectations of the first generation PlayStation. Analytically, all Sony needs to do is to install a stable hardware base around the world, even if they aren’t the first.

Being first only gives the competition an edge for a short time span, until a late bloomer draws in the rest of the world into its embrace. The revenue that Sony will earn, after all, is from the royalties on the software that will be sold for the console. So the final effect turns into a “chicken produces egg produces chicken produces egg” cycle that will eventually bring the console to eventual success.

As the console sales rise, more developers bring in more games. The more games that come out, the more people buy consoles for the games. The more consoles that are sold again, the more games come out. It’s pretty general, but it is nothing less than feasible. With low-price strategies aside, the only enemy of Sony is time.

With the purchases of full HD TV sets rising since late 2006, America has been gearing up for the next-gen entertainment age. But the question of when the sales spike up for that special game still remains elusive. Whether it will come this year, next year or in the ten-year period as claimed by Sony’s Harrison, most other market analysts pointed at the years before 2010. It’s just a matter of time.

Via Reuters