Sony Believes it Would Take “Several Years” for a Competitor to Rival Game Pass

Responding to Brazil's regulatory body, the PS5 manufacturer said Game Pass comprised "60-70 percent" of the global market share over the last 5 years.

Posted By | On 01st, Aug. 2022

Xbox Game Pass

Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard is currently being vetted for approval by different regulatory bodies across the world. Recently, Brazil’s regulatory body made all documents for the review process available online, which includes responses from third parties like Sony, Ubisoft, Warner Bros. and more about various topics. One such topic is Game Pass, Xbox’s subscription service that has over 25 million subscribers as of January 2022.

Sony’s response is interesting (as spotted by ResetEra). It felt that subscription services were competing with titles that must be purchased for a one-time fee. However, it said that the low upfront cost of subscription services may be “anti-competitive” regarding publishers that require selling titles to recoup investments on titles. It also felt that this could result in the lower quality of games, harming customers as well.

While this may sound like Sony is criticizing Game Pass in particular, it’s not a particularly new opinion from the company. Following the announcement of the revamped PlayStation Plus, Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki commented, “AAA type titles on PS5, if we distribute that on the subscription services we may need to shrink the investment needed for that and that will deteriorate the 1st party title quality and that is our concern.”

Continuing with its response, Sony said that Game Pass had captured “approximately 60-70 percent” of the global market for subscription services over the past five years. The market share in Brazil is reportedly even higher with 70-80 percent of PC subscription services comprised of Game Pass. Sony believed creating a rival to Microsoft’s subscription service, even with “substantial investments”, would require several years for a competitor.

Sony’s first-party success has been fairly strong since the PS5’s launch, but it clearly views Game Pass as a big threat. It remains to be seen how the service will evolve if the acquisition of Activision Blizzard is approved. But at the very least, Sony is intent on Call of Duty’s availability on PlayStation consoles, especially given its “unrivaled” popularity.


Amazing Articles You Might Want To Check Out!

Share Your Thoughts Below  (Always follow our comments policy!)



Keep On Reading!

Helldivers 2 Patch Fixes Freezes From Arc-Based Weapons and Stratagems

Helldivers 2 Patch Fixes Freezes From Arc-Based Weapons and Stratagems

The new patch ensures the Arc-12 Blitzer, Arc Thrower, and Tesla Tower will no longer cause players' games to ...

Like a Dragon, Judgment Developer is Seemingly Teasing an “Important Announcement” for Monday

Like a Dragon, Judgment Developer is Seemingly Teasing an “Important Announcement” for Monday

But Monday is April Fool's Day, so it could be a whole lot of nothing. Then again, it could be Judgment 3.

Princess Peach: Showtime! Beats Dragon’s Dogma 2 and Rise of the Ronin to Top Weekly Japanese Charts

Princess Peach: Showtime! Beats Dragon’s Dogma 2 and Rise of the Ronin to Top Weekly Japanese Charts

Princess Peach steals the spotlight from both massive, new open world action RPGs in the latest sales charts f...

Monster Hunter Wilds is Fully Open World, Capcom’s “Biggest Game by Far” – Rumour [UPDATE]

Monster Hunter Wilds is Fully Open World, Capcom’s “Biggest Game by Far” – Rumour [UPDATE]

UPDATE: Leaker Dusk Golem has said the screenshot of their supposed leaked details on Monster Hunter Wilds is...

Spyro 4 in Active Development Since January 2024 – Rumor

Spyro 4 in Active Development Since January 2024 – Rumor

YouTuber Canadian Guy Eh heard "whispers" of its development over the past few months, with some individuals a...

Overwatch 2 Season 10 Starts April 16th, New Gameplay Highlights Venture’s Skills

Overwatch 2 Season 10 Starts April 16th, New Gameplay Highlights Venture’s Skills

A limited-time trial kicks off from today till March 31st, allowing players on all platforms to try out the ne...