PlayStation now cares more about MAUs than console sales

Now that it has handily beaten Xbox console sales, Sony moving on with the next phase of the PlayStation business.

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In a recent Q1'25 earnings call, Sony management said that PlayStation is "moving away" from being a hardware-based business into a more community business, potentially indicating that Sony could break exclusivity on more PlayStation Studios titles (including Helldivers 2).

In the webcast, Sony senior VP Sadahiko Hayakawa affirming that the company now prioritizes users and engagement rather than raw unit sales. "In the gaming business [we're] moving away from hardware-centric business more to community-based engagement business. As we move to more entertainment creation, the stability and productivity and performance is increasing," Haykawa said.

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Sony has conquered Microsoft in console sales for two generations in a row, with the PS5 just reaching 80.3 million shipments. Now that this platform lead has been established, Sony is shifting gears to maximize the returns for its new bustling ecosystem. So far, the plan is working well; PS5 users are much more valuable than PS4 users with an estimated $800+ in life-to-date spend.

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Sony wants growth, though, and PS5 sales may be reaching peak levels; the PS4, for example, peaked at 9.7 million shipments when the PS4 Pro released, and the PS5 is reaching similar levels. Sony wanted to focus on live services to help boost growth and earnings, but that plan hasn't worked out very well. This shift has also led Sony to prioritize MAUs, or monthly active users, and the best way to grow your userbase is to release games on as many platforms as possible.

Cue Helldiver 2's release on Xbox, which was apparently instigated by Sony.

It looks like Sony is taking inspiration from Microsoft and is breaking exclusivity on some of its biggest games, at least where it makes sense. Which, again, is how Microsoft started this endeavor.

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The focus on MAUs, community, and engagement strongly indicates that Sony will want to sell its games to as many people as possible, and it's also worth mentioning though that there's a few games that meet this criteria already: Destiny 2, MLB The Show, and Bungie's upcoming Marathon, which are all coming to Xbox, PlayStation, and PC. And, of course, Helldivers 2.

That being said, a new Sony job listing does reinforce the theory that more PlayStation games are crossing over.

Sony is hiring a Sr Director, Multiplatform & Account Management that will "play a critical leadership role in shaping and executing the global commercial strategy for PlayStation Studios software titles across all digital platforms beyond PlayStation hardware, including Steam, Epic Games Store, Xbox, Nintendo, and mobile."

Sony's own internal business plans also give us an idea on what to expect.

Sony outlined its 5th Mid-Range Plan in FY23, and the plan runs from FY24-FY26. In the 5th MRP, Sony emphasized MAU growth to boost profitability. As I mentioned before, a good way to boost monthly active users is to widen your customer base, aka sell games to as many people as possible.

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Why focus on MAUs and not console sales, especially now that PS5 users represent a higher life-to-date value? It's simple: MAUs represent more potential profit than a console does by virtue of how much more profitable software and services are for Sony than hardware.