PlayStation Plus has lost nearly 2 million subscribers since its revamp

videogameschronicle.com:

PlayStation Plus subscribers have dropped by nearly 2 million users since the revamped service launched in June.

That’s according to Sony’s latest subscriber estimates, which were published on Tuesday as part of its FY2022 Q2 financial results – the first full quarter since it launched the revamped PS Plus.

Despite the revamp, PS Plus subs declined for the third quarter in a row. The total number of subscribers stood at 45.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022, down from 47.3 million in the previous quarter.

PlayStation Network monthly active users (MAUs) were also down during the three-month period at 102 million, a decline from 104 million a year earlier and 103 million in the previous quarter. This appears to be Sony’s lowest MAUs figure since it began reporting this data in early 2020.

However, despite the decline in subscribers, Sony’s Network services revenue – which encompasses PS Plus and advertising revenue – actually increased by 10%, from ¥106 billion to ¥116 billion, potentially reflecting uptake of the more expensive subscription tiers introduced by PS Plus.

Asked about the decline in an earnings call on Tuesday (transcribed by VGC), Sony’s CFO Hiroki Totoki blamed declining third-party game sales and ‘more people going outdoors’.

The exec said he expects subscriber numbers to recover during the company’s next quarter, partly due to the impact of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and God of War Ragnarök.

“There have been a declining number of members of PlayStation Plus,” he said. “However, in the second quarter we renewed our services and there hasn’t been a great momentum as a whole. Also, we didn’t make aggressive promotions during the second quarter.

“Therefore, in the future we are going to have