Sony has reportedly told analysts that PlayStation 5 supply constraints are expected to extend into 2022. The company had previously indicated that supply was “not likely” to increase this year, but according to Bloomberg, analysts have now been told outright that due to demand not subsiding anytime soon, even an increase in supply won’t suffice.
“I don’t think demand is calming down this year and even if we secure a lot more devices and produce many more units of the PlayStation 5 next year, our supply wouldn’t be able to catch up with demand,” Chief Financial Officer Hiroki Totoki said at a briefing last week, according to attendees who asked not to be identified. Sony declined Bloomberg’s request for comment.
When an analyst expressed concerns about Sony being able to capitalize on the unusual demand during the ongoing pandemic, Totoki reassured attendees that demand won’t be subsiding anytime soon.
“We have sold more than 100 million units of the PlayStation 4 and considering our market share and reputation, I can’t imagine demand dropping easily,” he said.
That said, Totoki did acknowledge that Sony needs to increase production as soon as possible to ensure that retailers have stock.
The ongoing shortage is made worse for the general public by scalpers who continue to thrive. Earlier today, Video Games Chronicle reported that popular reseller website StockX now claims to have sold over 130,000 PS5s at an average sale price of $573 for the disc version and $531 for the digital version. Over on eBay and Facebook Marketplace, PS5s have been sold for thousands of dollars.
[Source: Bloomberg]
