Sony confirms PS5 nearing end of life cycle

Released in November 2020, the PS5 arrived seven years after its predecessor, the PS4.

In its inaugural year, the PS5 sold approximately 15 million units, surpassing the first-year success of the PS4. However, unlike the PS4, which lasted seven years before reaching the end of its life cycle, Sony recently announced that PS5 sales are tapering off after just four years, marking it as the PlayStation console with the shortest lifespan.

Confirming this development, Sony's senior vice president, Naomi Matsuoka, stated, "Looking ahead, PS5 will enter the latter stage of its life cycle. As such, we will put more emphasis on balancing profitability and sales. Consequently, we anticipate that the annual sales pace of PS5 hardware will begin to decline from the next fiscal year."

Matsuoka's remarks follow Sony's initial target of selling 25 million PS5 units during the current fiscal year, ending on March 31, 2025. However, the tech giant has since revised its ambitions downward to 21 million units.

Since its release, the PS5 has sold just shy of 55 million units. Despite the console entering "the latter stage of its life cycle," a new version of the PS5 was released only a few months ago.

One notable enhancement in the updated device is the option for players to purchase a disc drive add-on, eliminating the need to decide between the digital or disc PS5 version. "If you purchase the PS5 Digital Edition, you can later add the Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive for PS5 separately," Sony stated in its press release.

Another significant improvement in the newer PS5 model is a reduction in volume by more than 30 percent. Regarding the potential release date of the PlayStation 6, rumors circulated last year suggesting that the sixth edition console might debut in 2027.

Official Sony documents with a date were shared last summer during Microsoft's pending acquisition of Activision Blizzard. According to the documents, Sony claimed that Microsoft had "offered to continue making Activision's games available on PlayStation only until 2027," possibly indicating a desire to sever ties ahead of the PS6's release.

The merger was finalized in October 2023 for $68.7 billion after 21 months, marking it as one of the largest deals of its kind.