In our previous blog, we did an Elite SWOT Analysis of the leading video game creator and hardware manufacturer, Nintendo. Here we will be doing a Stepwise SWOT Analysis of PlayStation.
PlayStation is the world’s best gaming console. It is also the best-selling console in the world to date.
PlayStation has gained such large success in its industry with its excellent marketing techniques that it has become one of the market leaders in its industry. This was all possible due to its to-the-point digital marketing. It is one of the leading marketing techniques used by every company nowadays as most people have shifted towards online media. If you are excited about learning what digital marketing is and how to use it to your advantage – check out our Free MasterClass on Digital Marketing 101 by the CEO and Founder of IIDE, Karan Shah.
Thus this makes us keen to know how PlayStation maintains a prominent position in the market. To understand that we have given an End-to-End SWOT Analysis of PlayStation. But before we start with its SWOT Analysis let us learn about PlayStation as a Company, its products, competitors, financials, and more.
About PlayStation
PlayStation is a home console video game developed and marketed by Sony Computer entertainment. It is an electronic game that consists of home video game consoles, handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone.
PlayStation was founded in December 1994 by Ken Kutaragi who was a Sony executive manager working in the company’s hardware engineering divisions. He was later recognized as “The father of PlayStation”. After its release in Japan, PlayStation made its American debut in September 1995. Both the releases got exceptionally good reviews and impressive sales. Games such as twisted metal and ridge racer were very popular amongst the buyers. By the year 2005, PlayStation became the first console to sell 100 million units.
In the series of PlayStation, the original console was the first console of any type, to ship over 100 million units of it, which was done in less than a decade. Its successor, PlayStation 2, was released in the global markets in the year 2000. PlayStation 2 (abbreviated as PS2) is the top-selling home console to date, reaching over 155 million units of sales by the end of 2012.
Sony’s next launch was the PlayStation 3, released in 2006. Followed by the PlayStation 4, released in 2013 which became the fastest-selling console in history. Sony’s latest console is the PlayStation 5, which was released in 2020.
| Founder | Ken Kutaragi |
|---|---|
| Year Founded | 1994 |
| Origin | Tokyo, Japan |
| No. of Employees | 111,700 (2020) |
| Company Type | Private |
| Market Cap | $3.66 Billion (2020) |
| Annual Revenue | $3.14 Billion (2020) |
| Net profit | $3.23 Billion (2020) |
Products of PlayStation
PlayStation is one of the well-known brands in the world. It provides its customers with different products. Following are some of the products of PlayStation:
- Home video game consoles
- Two handheld
- Media center
- Smartphone
- Online service and multiple magazines
Close Competitors of PlayStation
PlayStation brings one of the big names in the industry it has a large amount of competition in the market. Following are some of the competitors of PlayStation:
- Xbox
- Nintendo
- Sega
- Wii
- Ouya
- Liquid
- Yume
Now that we have known about the company let us start with the SWOT Analysis of PlayStation.
SWOT Analysis of PlayStation
SWOT analysis is one of the best methods used by different companies worldwide to analyze their progress in the market and see what can be improved. SWOT Analysis helps PlayStation find out its internal strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and threats.
This will help PlayStation to find proper solutions to its problems and know what it has to improve on.
Let us now start with its SWOT Analysis by first looking at the Strengths of PlayStation.
Strengths of PlayStation
Strengths are the positive factors that help PlayStation to hold its position in the market. Following are some of the Strengths of PlayStation:
- Successful go-to-market strategies – The PlayStation’s end goal is to enhance the overall customer experience taking into account product quality and pricing.
- Exclusive list of games – They also boast a list of exclusive games which were available on the PS only and for this reason platforms automatically excel because gamers want to experience and play these exclusive games.
- Reliable distribution network – Over the years, PlayStation has built a reliable distribution network that can reach the majority of its potential market.
- Strong brand portfolio – PlayStation has a strong brand portfolio, in the simplest of terms, this encompasses all the brands offered by a single firm for sale to cater to the needs of different groups of people.
- Unique gaming experience – Users of PlayStation vouch for the unique gaming experience that it provides the dual shock controllers increase the impact of shock and give the player a feeling of excitement
Weaknesses of PlayStation
Weaknesses are the factors that hold the growth of PlayStation. It needs to take care of these factors and find a solution to them as soon as possible. Following are some of the Weaknesses of PlayStation:
- Cannot create unified work culture – Unfortunately, they are not highly successful at creating unified work culture. So specifically when they bring smaller firms together they haven’t really figured out how to merge these firms in terms of their different work cultures.
- Weak marketing strategies – Although their products do well in terms of sales, their marketing is actually not that strong with positioning and unique selling propositions really not clearly defined.
- Workforce high attrition rate – PlayStation has a high attrition rate in their workforce. A high turnover means a lot of money spent on training and development.
- Frequent hardware updates – The console has to be upgraded. This doesn’t please gamers because they constantly have to replace these things.
Opportunities for PlayStation
Opportunities are the factors that help PlayStation grow in the market. It should find these opportunities and make them their strengths and grow its business. Following are some of the Opportunities for PlayStation:
- New trends in consumer behavior – New trends in consumer behavior and buying patterns can expand existing and create new markets for PlayStations.
- Virtual reality in gaming and social – Virtual reality remains a huge opportunity doubling of course both now as gaming and a social platform as well.
- Increasing in developing economies – Gaming is increasing especially in developing economies and emerging markets
- More people gaming during the pandemic – With the current pandemic situation, many more people are choosing products such as PlayStation even though the economy is fragile.
- Online platform expansion – Over the years, the company has invested a lot of money in its online platforms and this has opened up sales channels for PlayStation. This has become increasingly important as the pandemic lingers.
Threats for PlayStation
Threats are the factors that can create trouble in the growth of PlayStation in the future. It needs to be aware of such events with proper solutions to tackle them. Following are some of the threats for PlayStation:
- Competitor’s new technologies – PlayStation’s biggest threat remains the new technologies developed by competitors.
- Maturing markets – The markets are maturing with most players actually having an Xbox PlayStation or even Nintendo so this is especially true of the developed markets where disposable income is high.
- PC gaming is still strong – PC gaming is still strong because of the technology advantage of PC and the lower prices of their games.
- Liability laws – Liability laws in different countries may expose PS to various liability claims given changes in policies in those different markets.
- Rising cost of raw materials – Higher costs of raw materials can pose threat to PlayStation’s profitability.
With this, we have come to an end of the SWOT Analysis of PlayStation. This analysis helps it to find out its location in the industry at large and know what strategies they have to implement.
Conclusion
On the study of the SWOT Analysis of PlayStation, we have known that it is one of the largest companies in its industry. It has a successful go-to-market strategy and a unique gaming experience. It can expand its business with the help of new trends in consumer behavior and the increase in virtual reality in gaming and social. Even with such positive factors, it has some flaws in the market.
It lacks in creating a unified work culture and a high attrition rate in the workforce. Other factors such as the rising cost of raw materials and the liability laws can create a threat for the company in the future. It can still improve its marketing strategies by focusing more on advanced digital marketing strategies in the market as most people have shifted towards online media, thus it is one of the best marketing methods to be used by every company. If you are keen on learning and upskilling, check out IIDE’s 3 Month Advanced Online Digital Marketing Course to know more.
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