In the battle of the next-generation gaming machines, two key players are moving in different directions.
www.bloomberg.com
"In the battle of the next-generation gaming machines, two key players are moving in different directions.
Microsoft Corp. is making a serious attempt to attract fans in Japan with its new consoles and network services. Meanwhile, Tokyo-based Sony Corp. moved its PlayStation business headquarters to California in 2016 and has built the U.S. into its largest single market.
New Xbox and PlayStation devices launching this week will likely face an uphill battle in Japan, where Nintendo Co.’s Switch enjoys dominance with a family-friendly lineup of games.
But Microsoft’s targeting of the world’s
third-largest video-game market -- including with services that can be accessed across a variety of devices -- could potentially yield strong results. As the Xbox has virtually zero presence in the country, there’s plenty of room for it to increase its share.
A senior figure inside PlayStation headquarters in San Mateo, California, said the U.S. side was frustrated by the failure of the Japan marketing team to sell as many PlayStation 4 units as expected. The person asked not to be identified discussing internal matters.
As a result, Japan has been sidelined in planning the PlayStation 5’s promotion, according to several PlayStation staff in Japan. Employees in Tokyo said they’ve been left awaiting instructions from California.
Japan-based developer support teams have been reduced by as much as a third from their peak, and the rolling contracts of a number of game creators at PlayStation’s Japan Studio, one of the unit’s oldest in-house software ateliers, haven’t been renewed, former employees said. The U.S. office believes the PlayStation business doesn’t need games that only do well in Japan, employees in the California headquarters said.
Microsoft, which is launching its next-generation consoles in Japan on Tuesday, the same day it does so in the rest of the world, sees an opportunity in the country’s market. Microsoft didn’t start selling the Xbox One in Japan until almost a year after the U.S., which contributed to its
disappointing sales in the Asian country.
On top of that, there’s evidence Microsoft is seeking to make acquisitions in the country, though it hasn’t yet landed a deal with a big name there. Several Japan-based game developers, from small to big, said it had approached them about buying their businesses. They asked not to be identified as the talks were private, and declined to give details on how the discussions went.
When asked about potential purchases of Japanese companies, Jeremy Hinton, head of Xbox operations in Asia, said Microsoft is always open to discussions with creators that are a good fit. He said acquisitions are a possibility but there are no announcements to share at this time.
www.japantimes.co.jp
