"It's welcome and long overdue": Analysts on PlayStation's new subscription service
Christopher Dring
Head of Games B2B
Tuesday 29th March 2022
Sony Interactive Entertainment
The news that PlayStation is reconfiguring and merging its subscription services is long overdue, and should result in a significant improvement in revenue, say top industry analysts.
Experts from Ampere Analysis, Creative Strategies, Strategy Analytics and IDC gave their views on Sony's proposed new subscription service, and how it holds up against Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass alternative.
"Sony is long overdue combining these two products, because that's where the market is today," says Michael Goodman, director of TV and media strategies at Strategy Analytics.
"They have created an attractive product. Giving consumers the choice of hundreds of games, and combining the multiplayer is important. It's essentially a price cut for the subscription game-side of things. Instead of having two distinct products at $9.99, one which is really successful in PlayStation Plus, which something like 72% of its install base subscribes to. Versus the PS Now product, which something like 5% of its console install base subscribes to. So clearly in the consumer's mind, the current Now product has not had the value for consumers.
"40% of their install base is the benchmark [for PS Plus Extra or Premium] But even if they get up to 20% [...] that would be really successful"
Michael Goodman, Strategy Analytics
"Adding in hundreds of games, integrating the online part, and cutting the price... it greatly enhances the value."
Carolina Milanesi, president and principal analyst at Creative Strategies, adds: "It makes their subscription offering cleaner for consumers to make sense of. The annual subscription pricing is quite aggressive, which I believe will lead many
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