PS5 Sales Slow? No Worries, Sony Says—It's All About Recurring Revenue Now

As the PS5 enters its later years, Sony's CEO says there's no need to aggressively push console sales, focusing instead on monetizing the existing 125 million PS Plus users.

Remember when consoles got cheaper over time? That's so last generation. The PS5 actually costs more now than it did at launch in 2020, and Sony isn't sweating a potential slowdown in hardware sales. In fact, the company's top boss just said they don't need to "aggressively" sell the console at all.

Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, Sony President and CEO Hiroki Totoki explained that with the PS5 now in the latter half of its lifecycle, the focus has shifted. "We do not need to aggressively sell the console today," he said. Instead, Sony is zeroing in on recurring revenue from the players already in the ecosystem. And that's a massive pool—PS Plus alone boasts over 125 million monthly active users. The question is how to monetize them further.

What does "not aggressive" mean in practice? Likely no steep discounts or selling the hardware at a loss to lure new buyers. Sony has been pretty transparent about wanting to squeeze more value from its existing fanbase, and the numbers back that up. PS Plus is practically mandatory for online play on most titles, and the higher tiers dangle a juicy catalog of games to tempt subscribers further.

Sony is also charging full speed toward an all-digital future. Over 80% of PS5 game purchases are already digital, and once physical discs get phased out starting January 2028, that shift should give profits a hefty boost. Even with the PS5 hitting 95.3 million units sold by July 2026, recent quarterly console sales dropped 36% year-over-year. But Sony isn't panicking—they've still got a lively PS4 userbase to milk, and digital game sales jumped from 78% to 82% in the last quarter.

Interestingly, profits actually rose 37% during that period, thanks mostly to US tariff refunds and favorable exchange rates. But don't expect those savings to trickle down to your wallet—Sony's keeping that cash.

So, while the PS5's glory days of aggressive price cuts might be over, Sony's playing the long game, banking on subscriptions and digital sales. Will you be sticking with your PS5, or are you waiting for the next big thing? Let us know in the comments!