One of the major factors of criticism towards the latest Sony console is the insufficient supply of consoles in the market, despite the high demand and large sales generated by the available units. Among the factors that have generated this console shortage is a prolonged shortage of semiconductors, which although not only affects Sony, has become notable with the new generation of consoles.
Since the launch of PlayStation 5 As of November 2020, it has been difficult to find units for sale both online and in retail stores. Those that are obtained in other private distributors, are usually at prices that double and even triple the original price. It is an acquisition problem for consumers who do not have the monetary facility for said investment. One reason for the lack of components is the global pandemic.
Sony has not been able to meet the demand
“I don’t think demand will drop this year and even if we insure more devices and produce more PlayStation 5 units for next year, our supply will not be enough to meet that demand.”Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki said during a recent report on the company’s financial results.
Previously, Sony reported the desire to produce 14.8 million consoles to meet demand during the current fiscal year starting in April. The semiconductor shortage proves to be an obstacle to that goal. They are not the only ones worried, since both Nintendo with Switch and Microsoft with Xbox Series X / S, expect this to continue at least until the end of the second quarter of the year.
“We have sold more than 100 million units of PlayStation 4 and, considering our level in the market and reputation, I cannot imagine that the demand will fall easily”, concluded Totoki.
Until now, Sony has sold 7.8 million units of PlayStation 5 and this has earned them the biggest launch of a console in history. Some sources suggest that the company is working on a redesign of hardware that could make it easier and cheaper to produce PS5 consoles.
Fountain: Bloomberg
