In an interview with Business Insider Japan, Sony Interactive Entertainment President and CEO Jim Ryan has discussed PS4 launch’s delay in Japan, which he ultimately considers “not (…) a good idea.”
In an interview with Business Insider Japan translated by Gematsu, Sony Interactive Entertainment President and CEO Jim Ryan has discussed the PS4 launch’s delay in Japan, which he ultimately considers “not (…) a good idea.”
Ryan didn’t want to offer a comment about whether a similar solution would be used for the release of PlayStation 5. Still, he did hint at changes in the way the console is set to be launched on a worldwide scale compared to the current generation platform.
PS4 was shipped three months later in Japan in February 2014, and that “delay (…) was a decision that I was deeply involved in,” Ryan said.
Ryan is new in the role of President and CEO at SIE, but back in 2013, he still was an executive with responsibility on the European territory.
“There was reasonable ground for that decision, but these days I do not think that was a good idea,” he added, basically claiming that the strategy is going to be different this time, especially not to leave further room for competitors in the homeland. “It was a decision made after much debate, but there may have been other options.”
In particular, Nintendo Switch accounted for 76% of Japan console sales in 2019, and Sony is predictably interested in changing that by the end of 2020 and 2021 without further delays in their roadmap.
While Japan is seemingly going to witness a 1v1 battle between Sony and Nintendo next year, Microsoft is also interested in making its position in that territory stronger in the future. Phil Spencer has hinted more than once that he would like to acquire a Japanese developer down the line.
