During Sony's quarterly financial conference call, chief operating officer and chief financial officer Hiroki Totoki talked about the performance of the PlayStation business.
According to Totoki-san, Sony is now able to match the demand for PS5 almost all over the world. On top of that, the positive impact of increased sales for the console has started to show in engagement metrics. Dollar-based third-party software sales in February and March 2023 exceeded the figures for the same months in 2023. The number of monthly active users in March for PlayStation as a whole increased by 2.3 million accounts year-on-year in March.
The company plans to continue accelerating the penetration of the market by PS5, and has set the target for shipments in the current fiscal year (between April 2023 and March 2024) at 25 million units, which is the highest ever for any PlayStation console in the history of the company.
This ambitious goal is a whopping 5.9 million units above the 19.1 million PS5 consoles shipped in the fiscal year that just ended. If met, this target would bring the total of PlayStation 5 units that hit the shelves to 63.4 million by March 31, 2024.
The forecast was created by combining data on PS4 users moving to PS5 and trends about the acquisition of new customers. As a result, Sony believes 25 million shipments to be an achievable target.
Regarding software sales, Sony expects a slight increase (almost flat) for third-party games and Totoki-san admitted that perhaps that prediction is a bit conservative. Sony will look at the performance in the first quarter and then possibly review its outlook.
If you'd like to know more about Sony's financial performance and get an update on PS5 shipments, PlayStation Plus subscribers, and PlayStation Network monthly active users, you can check out our dedicated article.
