Sony and Microsoft exhibited their respective consoles, the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One, at the Electronic Entertainment Expo. Significantly, the companies indicated that the PS4 will sell for $399 compared to $499 for the Xbox One. Bloomberg reported that pre-orders for the PS4 exceed those for the Xbox One at both Amazon and Gamestop and cited the Xbox One’s restrictions on game sharing as a drawback for the console.
According to Bloomberg, Sony has delayed a decision to begin selling its console in Asia before the end of the year in order to
meet strong demand from the US and Europe.
New consoles are an opportunity for HW consoles to attract new users and for publishers to take share with new IP. HW launches have been positive for publisher sentiment. We expect the HW install base to remain stable in 2013-14 and give the edge to MSFT in the US (xBox Live audience benefit), and to Sony in Europe (PS4 better positioned vs. PS3). Pricing, hardware unit supply
availability, and quality gaming content will drive early sales.