[Sony Is Said to Limit PlayStation 5 Output in Its First Year](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-16/sony-is-said-to-plan-limited-playstation-5-output-in-first-year?srnd=technology-vp) by Takashi Mochizuki and Yuki Furukawa for Bloomberg > The global Covid-19 pandemic has affected Sony’s promotional plans for the new device but not its production capacity COVID-19 is not the culprit for this possibly low supply. It sounds like Sony can’t get enough parts to make the boxes. I wonder if Microsoft is or will have similar supply constraints. > Game developers who’ve been creating titles for the next PlayStation anticipate its price to be in the region of $499 to $549, and Bloomberg Intelligence’s Matthew Kanterman points to increased component costs pushing up the price required for Sony to break even. Sony has struggled with its price-setting decision for the PS5 because of scarce components… This was [[PS5 Price Appears to be in Flux|discussed]] in the last Bloomberg leak. The price is not out of the range I expect for both PS5 and Xbox Series X. But, [[Interview - Head of Xbox Phil Spencer – Unlocked 437 – IGN|Phil Spencer has said]] that Microsoft is “staying agile” with Series X pricing. Microsoft could take a hit on console sales and make it up in subscriptions and software easier than Sony could. Bloomberg also talks about how COVID-19 has really disrupted Sony’s plans to reveal the PS5. That [[PS5 Controller Revealed as the “DualSense”|DualSense]] controller reveal last week was reportedly “hurried” and “forced.” I definitely see it being rushed, it was a random blog post on a Tuesday, but forced? Bloomberg claims it was due to the need to share the controller with third party developers and Sony could not control the leaks. As for the console itself, Bloomberg says that a small circle of people is privy to the knowledge of its appearance, which is why the controller made a solo debut. > Suppliers have started delivering components to PS5 assemblers, who are scheduled to begin mass-producing the product by June. Sony’s PlayStation chief Jim Ryan has stressed that the machine’s launch should be simultaneous around the globe, according to people in the company’s supply chain. June to a presumable November launch is roughly six month production time. I’m not sure what the typical timeline is for a new game console, but it sounds okay to me. If Sony only expects to sell 5-6 million units around the world, I wonder how the quantity will break down. We may have another Wii supply situation on our hands. It definitely helps to launch worldwide, so there is some sort of presence in each major territory. PS4 launched in the US and Europe in November 2013 and launched in Japan in February 2014. For comparison, the Xbox One also launched in the US and Europe in November 2013, but launched in Japan in September 2014, nearly a year later! The closer in sync the systems can launch worldwide, the better for the platform. The longer these leaks of unofficial and drips of official information the more clear it becomes that Sony needs to lock down a reveal plan. Microsoft took the lead by sharing info before the COVID-19 pandemic. They can ride this hype until they can reveal the games. It feels like Sony is playing catch up with the reveals. I am curious to see how Sony adjusts their plans going forward. They’ve been one of the most publicly proactive game companies in response to COVID-19. They clearly wanted to go big with the PS5 reveal and not being able to gather in groups has halted those plans.