Recently the Sony Corporation has revealed their financial results for the last quarter of 2017, the period from January 1 to March 31, 2018, and the data (which also includes numbers related to the Games & Network division) are very encouraging for the PS4 specifically. As of March 31, in fact, 79 million of these consoles - both standard and Pro - have been shipped worldwide, with forecasts that this could increase to 95 million by March 31 next year.
Compared to the same period last year, hardware sales have decreased by almost one million units, a natural response to a console that's now mature. However, over the same period, Sony's platform has had a significant growth in terms of software as well as PS Plus subscriptions, as you can read below:
"Sales increased 294.0 billion yen (18%) year-on-year (a 13% increase on a constant currency basis) to 1,943.8 billion yen. This increase was primarily due to an increase in PlayStation 4 software sales, including sales through the network, the impact of foreign exchange rates, as well as an increase in the number of subscribers for PlayStation Plus, a paid membership service."
"Operating income increased 41.9 billion yen year-on-year to 177.5 billion yen. This increase was primarily due to the above-mentioned increase in sales, partially offset by an increase in selling, general and administrative expenses. During the current fiscal year, there was a 19.8 billion yen positive impact from foreign exchange rate fluctuations."
Do you think the future predictions are feasible?
Thanks, DualShockers.