Sony denies report that it's slashed PS5 manufacturing by 4 million units
David Craig What you need to know
- According to Bloomberg, Sony intended to produce 15 million PS5 units by March 2021.
- This number is reportedly being cut by 4 million down to 11 million units.
- This issue is reportedly due to high failure rates in the chip yields needed for production.
Update, September 15 (2:48 p.m. ET): Sony has issued a statement to GamesIndustry.biz denying the Bloomberg report.
While the PS5 is still coming this holiday, it may be doing so in lesser numbers than Sony originally intended. According to a report from Bloomberg, PS5 production is cut by 4 million units for the launch window ending March 2021, meaning Sony is now planning for 11 million units instead of 15 million.
Bloomberg further reports this issue is due to unexpectedly high failure rates in the system-on-a-chip (SOC) yields that are viable for production. Per Bloomberg sources, Sony is facing "production yields as low as 50% for its SOC." The PS5 specs are pushing extremely high clock speeds for its processing power. It was originally reported back in July that Sony was increasing production to 10 million units. Per this report, production was originally planned to increase again to 15 million.
Bloomberg also suggests that the lowest-possible price point is $449 for the PS5 and $399 for the PS5 Digital Edition. Pricing and release date details could be announced at an upcoming PS5 games showcase which is being held on September 17 at 1:00 p.m. PDT. With the reveal of the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S pricing and release date, with preorders going live on September 22.
Update, September 15 (2:48 p.m. ET) — Sony denies Bloomberg report
In a statement given to GamesIndustry.biz, Sony denies cutting down production of the PS5, stating "We have not changed the production number for PlayStation 5 since the start of mass production." GamesIndustry.biz also notes that Sony's stock dropped 3.5% as a result of the initial news.
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