With over two million units sold, it’s largelly thought that Sony’s PlayStation VR (PSVR) is the most successful high-end VR headset on the market right now. But it sounds like the wider market’s growth isn’t living up to the company’s expectations.
During a recent Corporate Strategy Meeting, attended by Wall Street Journal reporter Takashi Mochizuki, Sony Interactive Entertainment President and CEO John Tsuyoshi Kodera noted that the company’s own headset was still selling, but the industry’s overall growth is below market expectations. As such, Kodera told those in attendance that the company would aim for a more “realistic outlook” on the headset’s performance in the future.
SIE head Kodera: PSVR growing, but industry’s growth is below market expectations. PS Vue is facing harder-than-expected competitions. Vue and PSVR would aim for further growth with realistic outlook.
— Takashi Mochizuki (@mochi_wsj) May 22, 2018
It’s a little tricky to pick apart exactly what Kodera means here. Instead of suggesting PSVR itself isn’t measuring up to expectations, he seems to be suggesting that sales of other headsets like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive aren’t as strong as anticipated. Indeed, both Oculus and HTC still haven’t shared sales data for their respective headsets two years on from release, which might suggest they haven’t managed to keep pace with PSVR, though there’s no way of knowing that.
These comments are in line with remarks from Kodera’s predecessor, Andrew House, who last year said he wasn’t “entirely comfortable” with PSVR leading the market “by such a margin that seems to be happening right now,” likely referencing Rift and Vive sales.
Elsewhere in the meeting, Kodera noted that PS4, the console that powers PSVR, is entering the end of its life cycle, suggesting a successor may not be too far away now. If that’s the case, can we expect a sequel to PSVR in the next few years too?
PSVR itself enjoyed a price drop earlier this year, though we haven’t seen a sales update from Sony since it passed the two million mark in December 2017. Perhaps the company will announce another milestone during its E3 2018 press conference in a few weeks’ time?
