Sony raises prices for PlayStation 5 console due to economic pressures and inflation

Sony has increased the recommended retail price of PlayStation 5 consoles worldwide, including in the UK, Europe, Canada, and Japan.

This change was announced in a blog post, made by Jim Ryan, the president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment.

He informed that high global inflation rates and adverse currency trends are impacting consumers and creating pressure on multiple industries which is why Sony has made the decision to increase the recommended retail price of PlayStation 5 consoles.

According to Ampere Analysis reports, price changes will take place in 45 markets around the globe. While price changes will take effect immediately in the majority of the markets, they won’t occur in Japan until September 15, 2022. It is worth noting that US prices will remain unchanged.

The updated RRP for both PS5 versions:

Europe: +€50

• Disc-based model – €549.99
• Digital edition – €449.99

UK: +£30

• Disc-based model – £479.99
• Digital edition – £389.99

Japan: +¥5,000

• Disc-based model – ¥54,980 yen
• Digital edition – ¥44,980 yen

China: +400 RMB

• Disc-based model – ¥4,299 yuan
• Digital edition – ¥3,499 yuan

Australia: +AUD $50

• Disc-based model – AUD $799.95
• Digital edition – AUD $649.95

Mexico +1,000 pesos

• Disc-based model – MXN $14,999
• Digital edition – MXN $12,499

Canada: +CAD $20

• Disc-based model – CAD $649.99
• Digital edition – CAD $519.99

Piers Harding-Rolls, the research director at Ampere Analysis said that this must have been a tough decision for Sony considering the fact that Microsoft showed no sign of increasing the price of their consoles and the supply constraints for PS5.

He continued by saying that the company believed that there would be some disappointment among consumers, however, the company also believed that the price increase would have almost no impact on console sales.

He concluded by stating that Microsft showed no indication of an intention to raise the price of their consoles and would likely take advantage of this in order to push their “value” message regarding the Xbox Game Pass as well as the Xbox Series S console.

According to Ampere Analysis estimates, Sony has sold 21 million PlayStation 5 consoles globally, which is significantly more than 13.8 million Xbox Series X/S console units sold by Microsoft.