Playstation Product Life Cycle

I decided to do my research on Sony due to the advancement in technology and the competition between companies such as Microsoft, Apple, and Sony. I have been around long enough to know about Sony’s products but the real reason that attracted me to them for this essay is because I actually believe that they are having a negative trend. I am starting to see less Sony items in stores and I haven’t really heard much about them. Whereas companies such as Apple are constantly being talked about and you often see people walking around with some type of apple product in their hands. Today we are going to research Sony through a horizontal analysis and through different ratio analyses. Let’s see what we find!

Promoting and deals – Sony's advertising system is to position itself as a trailblazer and a creator of fantastic items, which empower it to offer its items at a premium higher than its competitors. To accomplish these objectives, the organization's developments are normally sponsored by huge and ardent showcasing endeavors which have had served to make a few effective sub-brands, for example, Trintron, Walkman and WEGA. These achievements thusly further fortify the brand

* Identification of the strategic goals of both the SBU and the parent company, Sony, and reevaluating goals as the market or technologies shift, or as Sony adjusts its corporate strategies;

To regain some of its market share in its “growth driven” and “stable profit generators” sectors, Sony can reposition its competition in the minds of consumers. For instance, Sony can use comparative advertising to demonstrate that its brands are superior to its competitors. In this situation, Sony can attempt to alter the portrayed image of its competitor, Nintendo, and position its PlayStation game console as the better-quality product (Positioning(marketing), n.d).

As sales of Nintendo’s Wii and DS dominate the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and PlayStation Portable, respectively, the pressure continues to mount on Sony and Microsoft to move to the next level in the ongoing console wars. Sales of the Wii in 2008

With all these elements concerning the gaming industry. PlayStation 4 continue to outsell its competition. Which is the Xbox One as well is the Xbox 360 and the Nintendo. In turn makes it the number one gaming console worldwide. Sony has committed to cultivating it's gaming system for the next generation to enjoy the product. Sony PlayStation 4 has no pressure with it status in the gaming industry with it significant prices, and design. With gives reasoning to buy the console.

For generations, Sony’s PlayStation has battled Microsoft’s Xbox for the top spot in the console gaming industry. The current “next gen” consoles are the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox one. Having a PlayStation 4 myself, the PlayStation 4 is, without a doubt, the better console of the two. The two consoles share similarities, but also have differences, in the hardware enclosed within them, their online services, and the games that they offer players.

In order for us to evaluate what people’s opinions of their consoles were, we decided to evaluate the most recent video game consoles that released only three years ago. As a result, we choose to use Microsoft’s Xbox One and Sony’s PlayStation 4. Launching just one week apart from each other in November 2013, the Xbox one and PS4 gave birth to the eighth generation of video consoles. Each console sold millions within their first few weeks on the market. At the end of 2013, Sony’s PlayStation 4 had been sold to over 4.2 million people worldwide (2), were as Microsoft’s Xbox One had only been sold to 3 million people worldwide (1). As of November 1st, 2016 the PlayStation 4 had over 45 million units sold to consumers worldwide, followed by the

In the year leading up to 2013 both brands went in different directions with where they wanted to take their console. Playstation wanted to make sure it was the games that were being put first while the Xbox One was being marketed as more than just a gaming

The huge potential and high margins in gaming industry attracted stalwarts –Sony and Microsoft to directly compete with Nintendo by launching their own device consoles, PS3 and Xbox respectively. Although a late entrant in the market, Microsoft attracted huge audience with Xbox in 2001. The existence of developer network for Microsoft windows enabled new and enticing content to be quickly developed for Xbox. As the semiconductor industry saw huge improvements and innovations, Microsoft, and its competitors, introduced advanced hardware. Microsoft followed Xbox with Xbox One in 2006 and Xbox Live in 2013.

“To become a leading global provider of networked consumer electronics, entertainment and services.” That’s the mission of Sony, producer of the Sony Playstation. Sony, information and

Nintendo appears to have implemented a market-penetration pricing strategy. The Wii at a cost of $250 is 50% less than the 20-gigabyte PS3 (smaller hard drive machine). At this lower price, it is easier for the product to penetrate the market due to affordability in most segments. This aligns with the assumed company’s aim of maximising market share in the current and new segments. To achieve this, Nintendo ensured that the Wii was less costly to manufacture. Moreover, a higher sales volume may lead to lower unit costs and higher long run profits. Conversely, Sony is believed to have a market-skimming pricing strategy. The company invested $2 billion in technology, so this strategy aims at recovering the maximum amount of revenue to cover the high costs incurred in the early stages of the product life cycle. Additionally, Sony has a strong brand due to the success of their previous machines (PS2 and playstation) and the high price assists in communicating the image of a superior product with quality.

However, when Microsoft started the development of its next generation console- the Xbox 360- it recognized the deficits and problems related to its initial strategy: the company was operating under too high costs in order to assure high product availability which was not the critical factor in this business. The nature of the console business is about providing the customer with a cheap hardware and a variety of games, in order to generate profits from games sales. Additionally, the first Xbox was released one year behind Sony’s PS2, Microsoft’s biggest competitor in the market. This delay resulted in a substantial loss of sales and consequently reduced game sales. Therefore, Microsoft learned that the Xbox 360 had to be launched ahead of Sony’s PS3. Accordingly, one relevant part of Microsoft’s new strategy was the “first-to-market” approach. Another essential change in Microsoft’s business strategy concerned its cost structure in the Xbox supply chain. Whereas the initial strategy focused heavily on reliability, Microsoft changed its strategy to achieving reduced costs and increased profitability. Additionally, the company insisted on owning the design of critical components, such as the microprocessor and the graphics chip, in order to “control its own destiny”. Therefore, the supply chain network needed to be redesigned in order to support Microsoft’s strategic shift. So as to reach the desired cost

* Sony supported the launch of the PS3 with a $150 million advertising campaign that aimed to

Way back then, Sony entered the market originally as a supplier of components for Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) home console. However, when Nintendo failed to introduce new technologies that would improve the gaming experience, Sony grabbed the chance to seize the opportunity. Sony