Sony Group Corp. is raising the price of its PlayStation 5 in Japan by 19% to nearly ¥80,000 ($550) almost four years into the console’s life cycle.
The surprise move comes even as PS5 sales have slowed and Sony is widely expected to refresh its offering with a more powerful, mid-cycle revamp of the console in coming months. Prices of accessories like the DualSense wireless controller and Pulse wireless headset are also set to rise in Japan from Sept. 2.
“This decision takes into consideration the business impact of the severe external environment, including recent global economic fluctuations,” the company said on its PlayStation blog on Tuesday.
The price increases are on the heels of Sony lifting the suggested retail price ranges on its TV, headphones and cameras at the start of this month. Microsoft Corp. also announced a price increase for its Xbox consoles in Japan earlier this month, raising the price of its Xbox Series X 12% to almost ¥67,000.
Tokyo-based Sony may hit a new high in games division profit in the fiscal year to March, according to Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Masahiro Wakasugi and Takumi Okano. They see the company’s strong stable of first-party titles and a prospective price hike on PlayStation network services — required for online multiplayer play — as helping drive profitability alongside stringent cost controls.