sony interactive entertainment

Jack Tretton Said Sony Will Face More Competition Than Ever Going in the Next-Gen

Sony stunned the gaming community when it dropped a number of details on its upcoming console. While there is still plenty of mystery surrounding the (still technically unnamed) PlayStation 5, there’s one fairly notable person who believes Sony can triumph for two generations in a row: Jack Tretton. He’s the former CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America (now known as Sony Interactive Entertainment). However, he also believes that the media giant faces more competition than ever.

In an interview with VentureBeat, Tretton said Sony is “very well-positioned” for success in the upcoming generation. Expanding on his points, he said, “The leader of the prior generation is always in a good position going into the new generation.” However, as we’ve seen in past generations, the leader of one generally doesn’t guarantee that will remain the case in the next. In fact, it’s quite rare when the leader of one generation remains so the next. Though with almost 100 million PlayStation 4s in the wild, that is an impressive advantage.

Despite this optimistic outlook, Tretton also noted that the gaming landscape is more crowded than ever, as he said, “[Sony]’ll face exponentially more competition than they did the last time around.” Though it hasn’t formally unveiled its newest console, many expect Microsoft to come to E3 2019 with its next system in hand. Even tech giants like Google are throwing theie hats into the ring. While details are still slim, we do know Google’s Stadia platform will be streaming-based, and big names have already signed on to support it.

Sony is already facing stiff competition, with the Nintendo Switch surpassing sales numbers of the PS4 in Japan a mere two years after launch. However, Nintendo’s hybrid platform still trails behind the PS4 in worldwide numbers.

Despite the competition, Sony is certainly prepping itself for success. The deep-dive into the PS5s features included the announcement that it would feature PS4 backwards compatibility and a sneak peek at its impressive tech. Now let’s just hope the price is an agreeable one.

[Source: VentureBeat]

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