PSP experiences 17% decrease in sales, software in last place

by Andrew Yoon { Jun 12th 2008 at 10:59PM }

Things are not looking for Sony's handheld. After what appeared to be a successful resurrection with the redesigned PSP-2000, things have slowed down significantly for the system. EEDAR analyst Jesse Divnich noted that sales of PSP have dropped quite a bit from its previous highs. In fact, it sold 17% less systems in May 2008 as it did in May 2007. Momentum is significantly dropping.

The outlook for PSP is going to be much worse before it gets any better. According to Divnich, "this trend will likely continue, as we do not see any significant PSP titles in the short-term pipeline that could drive hardware sales in Sony's favor." The PSP software drought certainly isn't going to help.

For one reason or another, PSP software sales are also significantly lower than on any other platform. Divnich noted. "Furthermore, PSP software has consistently been last in software unit sales among the next-generation consoles and handhelds. Additionally, the PSP was the only console not to have a title in the top 10 of unit sales, even the PS2 managed to creep into the top ten with sales from Iron Man." So long as PSP software continues to flop, publishers and developers will have no need to create new content for the system.

Tags: analyst, eedar, jesse-divnich, psp, sales

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Wrathbringer @ Jun 12th 2008 11:05PM

Homebrew and piracy FTW!

RIP Sony's PSP, you had a good run.

pixelator @ Jun 13th 2008 2:48AM

STFU with your moronic piracy conspiracy bullshit. You can thank SONY for what has happened to the PSP. It was their system and their responsibility - from the flash card security on up to the lack of games.

Jayme @ Jun 13th 2008 7:25AM

If the psps sales were low world wide i think there would be more concern.The fact is sales in japan and most of europe are solid.

required @ Jun 13th 2008 11:55AM

NOTE: these types of articles started to appear on the same day the PSP began outselling Nintendo's wares in Japan.

Saigon @ Jun 14th 2008 12:06PM

There is no solid proof that piracy is NOT seriously harming psp. Look at the freakin' number of people downloading psp games on that one torrent site, that pspfanboy showed a while ago. Fact is, no one for sure can say that piracy is or is not destroying psp.

Keef @ Jun 12th 2008 11:59PM

Yeah, piracy is killing the PSP. Shame too, it's got some solid games and a lot of potential as a multimedia device. *frownie face*

Daniel @ Jun 13th 2008 12:18AM

Yep. Piracy bad for PSP.

I sond like a caveman LOL

But seriously. People are stupid. They are killing off the very thing they are using to pirate on. People have no brains.

held225 @ Jun 13th 2008 12:50AM

I have a good solution for this problem, Sony should build a safety system into the PSP. So as soon some idiot hacker opens up the PSP it will fry its own circuits, rendering it useless. Kinda like a self destruct mechanism. That should teach those low life hackers a lesson

Ginji @ Jun 13th 2008 1:47AM

I think there's a law that prohibits this kind of methods, if not then i'll make sure to sue sony for pain money and buy a shit load of nintendo games.

Niko_Bellic @ Jun 13th 2008 2:05AM

The problem is that it's so easy to hack. All you need to do is install the latest custom firmware, and you're free to start downloading games. (Not that I condone that sort of thing.) The 360 is a little more complicated; the PSP's just so easy I think it's almost hard for people to resist the temptation.

pixelator @ Jun 13th 2008 2:22PM

Not that simple. Since UMD's can't have custom chips built into them like cartridges (that worked fairly well for the SNES, N64 and even some GBA and DS games), there's no real hardware 'key' you can call from the game that exists in the PSP. Again, they set that up poorly, but it's not the true culprit.

As has been exhaustingly covered elsewhere, there's little solid proof that piracy is what has caused the US sales slump (especially since there's plenty of piracy overseas and the PSP is doing far better there). It's Sony's support - period. No TV, GPS or online video downloads here to speak of. Multiple colors that come out in Japan fail to make it here. Few localized Japanese games, some of which could do quite well here if properly marketed (the DS has shown oddball JP titles have a big following)... To say nothing of advertising snafus.

mike @ Jun 13th 2008 1:32AM

Not even the b-ray copy function in a coming update to the ps3 fw will save the psp then?

McDoobie @ Jun 13th 2008 6:22AM

People want games, not movie copy abilities.

Neil @ Jun 13th 2008 1:44AM

Yeah this news really isn't news....it's been a long time coming. I always laugh when I hear people say they're hacking their system just to "added functionality" that Sony didn't put into the PSP, but then they never seem to know what "added functionality" they're getting from hacking the system....no one wants to admit that they're hacking their system to play pirated software, some of which wasn't even made for the PSP.

jitty @ Jun 13th 2008 1:44AM

"For one reason or another, PSP software sales are also significantly lower than on any other platform. "

O rly? Where are those guys that were justifying piracy a little while ago?

blindelf @ Jun 13th 2008 1:55AM

Just earlier today I was thinking about how the recent surge in PSP popularity in Japan should bring a fresh wave of games being announced...maybe not?

Will there be a PSP2?

Zippon @ Jun 13th 2008 2:38AM

Just wait for it, guys. Pixelator will be on soon and will announce that nobody buys the current software because there aren't enough commercials for the PSP. People sit at home with their PSP's, trying to think of games to buy, and they never look at the internet, they simply wait for commercials on TV.

Or they'll say that there are no good games, which is why nobody buys games even when good ones come out (a logical pretzel that I've never quite understood).

Remember: It's never the pirates fault. Piracy is 100% identical on every system (there is no way that PSP owners are more technically savvy than DS owners and try hacking their units more---ZERO chance of that), and since piracy has always been around, we should ignore it and never try to stop it or factor it in. Like all crime, it's better to capitulate.

RIP PSP. It's been a fun ride.

Niko_Bellic @ Jun 13th 2008 10:23PM

Yup. You called it, right on the money..... By the way, I've, for a while now, pretty much been saying, what you've just said.

Jacksons @ Jun 13th 2008 2:54AM

Aw, I hope it doesn't fade away. I get more use out of this thing than my other consoles by a considerable margin. It might be time to throw some high quality casual / kid games at it to expand the audience.

Don @ Jun 13th 2008 1:42PM

"I get more use out of this thing than my other consoles by a considerable margin."

Yeah me too.... I've used my PSP(s) almost every single day since I first got it in May 2006..... Sony's made some *major* stumbles but I hope the PSP survives....

jitty @ Jun 13th 2008 6:18PM

@ Don

Yep, I got my psp on the US launch March something 2005. But after about 2 years, when I got my PS3, I stopped using the PSP a lot. Then about 6 months after that, I got my mp3 player and basically stopped using my psp completely. It's not that the psp is not good but I simply learned that I don't like playing video games when I'm out. I'd much rather listen to music or enjoy my time out.

And psp software is similar to console software and console software is much much more enjoyable IMO. So my psp became useless as a game machine and as a mp3 player.

Lulu @ Jun 13th 2008 3:00AM

It's funny how PSP outsells every other console in Japan but does poorly in the US.

I wonder what went wrong here.

min @ Jun 13th 2008 6:24AM

America sucks? And Japan is a little more tight on their hackers.

blindelf @ Jun 13th 2008 12:56PM

Well we all want our favorite systems to do well and have a bright future, thats just human nature.

I think people need to ask themselves how many games do you need to love enough to buy and play the heck out of in order to justify buying the hardware?

10? 15?

For some people it might be 5 games...

I'll say this: if the PSP really does start to truly go under, I'm buying a bunch of kick-ass underappreciated games in the bargain bins and an extra system or two when they drop to a hundred bucks...

This is WAY too cool a piece of hardware to let go of...this thing will have a cult following for the ages, and not just the hackers...

Neuromancer @ Jun 13th 2008 1:45PM

I agree, I love this system and just got it so right now there are plenty of games for me to get from the back catalog. But the future doesn't look too bright from what I hear.

Glyn C @ Jun 13th 2008 4:40AM

It's such a shame, I think the PSP is great, I just yearn for more suitable games. I personally think the best genre for the PSP is pick-up-put-down strategy games. I bought Theme Hospital from the PSN and transferred it to my PSP, I couldn't stop playing it! I used to play it on the PC many moons ago, but it was great on the PSP. Brilliant game and clearly suited to the PSP experience. I've just bought Red Alert to see how that goes. As far as I can see, the only decent strategy game planned for the platform in the 'near' future is Tom Clancy's End War. And that's miles away.

Zippon @ Jun 13th 2008 8:35PM

D'oh! You got me all excited by mentioning Theme Hospital. "How did I miss that on the PSN? I'll go get it right now!"

Alas, I am in the US, and you are....in the UK? :-(

I'd buy that download in a heartbeat.

Ah, well. I'm enjoying the hell out of R-Type Command. That'll have to do for now.

daxFan @ Jun 15th 2008 2:43AM

Of course, everyone jumps on the bandwagon to blame piracy. Completely ignoring the fact that there is a severe lack of releases over here and very little original content. Piracy isn't the problem as so many of you want to think it is. Software releases is the problem.

And it's pretty obvious that sales are dipping considering they haven't released anything of worth (or much at all) since Crisis Core.

Joe @ Jun 13th 2008 7:45AM

I think the future for the PSP will start seeing more downloadable games. That way the games are harder to pirat. Also who says the PSP sells bad in the US. The US has had the most PSP sales out of all the big three system areas.
The hardware in the life time of the PSP has sold the most in the US then Japan. So saying the PSP sells bad is not true. It just is having a slow down right now. Again I want to say I see download games being the future for the PSP. There are even plans to get third party members to bring games out just that way. To name one is Galaxy's End. That is if Novastrike sells well that is.

acefondu @ Jun 13th 2008 12:55PM

It's not piracy. The PSP was the #1 selling system for a few months with the release of Monster Hunter. So gee...could it be a long stretch of shitty games? Yes, I sure think so.

Steve @ Jun 13th 2008 8:37PM

man you gotta feel sorry for sony, the introduce new security patches with every update yet those hackers always find a way around it, the ought to involve the cops, i mean, theres only two major homebrew teams, how hard could it be to track there ip?

Keith @ Jun 13th 2008 10:10AM

get capcom to release a psp resident evil and software sales problems will be a thing of the past. don't blame piracy. the ps2 has even greater piracy problems and its software is still going strong...

Keith @ Jun 13th 2008 10:14AM

oh and i almost forgot - how about that Grand Tourismo Portable which sony promised 3 years ago? Put on hold in favour of Grand Tourismo 5 on ps3 that where! Maybe they should get their priorities right first.

Sean Capisonda @ Jun 13th 2008 12:55PM

I'll try to be more optimistic here when it come to the state of the psp.

we've got the god of war bundle recently released in NA, the Crisis Core Bundle released in Europe soon, and the Madden Bundle coming soon to NA. To say that Sony isn't putting in at least some effort in to selling their portable is a lie. May was a slow month for the PSP in general but I don't see that trend continuing to be that drastic in next month hardware wise at least. And the last I checked there were like 35 million psp sold thus far in it's history albeit pales in comparison with the DS but is equal or greater than 360 and ps3 sales combined. They way I see it the market is somewhere in between the DS market and the next gen consoles market.

When it comes to software, I admit that the psp is a bit thin right now. But the only thing that keeps me hopeful, is the square enix games upcoming, continued success in japan (hopefully leading to some NA ports of games coming out of there), and continued support by Sony itself (getting good developers to make games they are willing to publish, increased functionality of the system via firmware, and more peripheral like gps, keyboard, camera etc)

MrC @ Jun 13th 2008 10:26AM

Is piracy killing the PSP. Probably. Here's my problem, though. People (myself included) are going out of their way to install custom firmware not because they want to pirate games, but because they really do want to run other software. They want a halfway decent implementation of flash. They want a shoutcast streamer that has some semblance of control (as opposed to the offered ones that do not). They want an e-book reader. The PSP is capable of all of these, but Sony hasn't offered up the goods. So, instead, people hack their way in, and once your in, the door is open to piracy.

The solution, my friends, is a free or accessibly-priced SDK.

Ryan A @ Jun 14th 2008 7:23PM

Piracy hasn't even entered the equation for me. What's lacking are games that really grab my attention. Golf and racing? Seriously? Doesn't SCEA have any clue what the hell people want out of the PSP?

Ryan A @ Jun 14th 2008 7:23PM

It really is a shame, too. The sole reason I bought the PSP was so that I could play God of War, Crisis Core and Final Fantasy: Tactics. The games were what prompted me to buy the system, but that it doubles as my mp3 player which I tend to keep on my person at all times, only serves to increase its usefulness for me.

I'm looking to buy a big memory card (I can't find anything larger than 2GB in my city) so that I can load it up with television shows (Fullmetal Alchemist, xxxHOLiC, et cetera).

I picked up Jean D'Arc recently because I heard it was good and I've been wanting a really interesting game for the PSP for a while now. Golf 'really' isn't my cup of tea.

Nate @ Jun 13th 2008 11:13AM

"Things are not looking for Sony's handheld"

...you guys forgot "good", right?

Neuromancer @ Jun 13th 2008 1:43PM

Yeah I noticed that too.

I like to think they're talking about horrible, unspeakable things from man's worst nightmares, relentlessly hunting their PSPrey in the dead of night.

Brittany @ Jun 13th 2008 11:23AM

I actually think that it's USED games sales that are killing the PSP. Everyone here should know how ridiculous EB's profits are... you go in sell back a psp game for like 5 bucks, they turn around and sell it for 16.99 - That's all profit for them and the developer doesn't get a cut of that money at all.

Because of that I always try and buy games NEW so I can support the developers that I like.

Yomachaser @ Jun 13th 2008 12:24PM

The thing killing psp here is that Sony America DOES NOT TRY! The japanese arm of the company puts in 100x time effort making 1st party games, keeping the psn/pc store flooded with new content and push great games like Monster Hunter 2ndG with bundles and strong ads.

Our PSN is full of garbage like ridge racer and the entire focus seems to be on linking features to the PS3 and pushing the hell out of that.

If for just for one second SCEA tried hard to give the psp a distinct image/focus (as opposed to trying to appeal to greed and envy in the get your own ads) the psp would succeed.

bryansurvive @ Jun 13th 2008 2:27PM

piracy you say. i dont think so anymore. just like keith said and so have i. ps2 has had piracy since the start. you can just rent them from blockbuster and burn. psp is probably the next best thing to have happened to me. they just need to bring in the mascots of playstation im sure something positive will happen.
mascots included: resident evil, devil may cry, crash, final fantasy, maybe some dead or alive, remake of silent hill. anything to cheer up this drag. maybe even some grand tourismo.

Zippon @ Jun 14th 2008 12:51AM

Bryan,
Drive to Blockbuster.
Search through game racks.
Wait in line.
Pay for rental.
Drive home.
Purchase blank disc.
Burn disc.
Check disc for errors (burn another, if needed).
Drive back to Blockbuster and return rental.

Compared to:
Connect usb cable (or wireless to PSP).
Click mouse 3 or 4 times to find game, download game, and transfer game to PSP.
Done.

Piracy is MUCH easier these days. The only hurdle is putting CFW on in the first place. And there are thousands of helpful posts, sites, and videos instructing people on how to do just that!

I'm just sayin'......

Binaryfiend @ Jun 13th 2008 2:14PM

Does anyone else smell a new model coming? The signs are slowly starting to point to that no?

Brian @ Jun 13th 2008 2:31PM

More game will get more people interested in the PSP, and better copy protection will limit piracy.

CFW are cool but if you are using it just to get hacked games you know you're wrong. You like the games then buy them, rent them, gem them used let developer see their is some consumer interest.

There need to be more games both UMD's and PSN downloads. The Japan store has a bunch of games I would download if they were available here (RE 2, Silent Bomber, Dino Crisis, Metal Gear Solid, Intelligent Qube, Bloody Roar, Wild Arms 2, just to name a few), so come on and work out those issues already. There are a bunch or PSP's out there Sony give us something to play on them.

I really enjoy my PSP and the games on it, I really hope Sony can turn thing around. The PSP is a great piece of hardware, it just needs the software to make it shine.

cduran01 @ Jun 13th 2008 5:52PM

They need to put the PSN store on the PSP and offer more downloadable games. They should also make it easier for indies to to become PSP developers. Since the big companies can't be bothered they need to turn to the best source of unique games, independent developers.

They also need to hurry up with the GPS add-on and the bluray -> PSP downloads.

PitaMan @ Jun 15th 2008 12:43PM

Of course piracy definitely doesn't help, but we are not seeing enough games coming out. Especially quality games. All the games are coming out in Japan and not enough advertising is also a factor. What happened to all the firmware updates too? It seems like Sony is not putting 100% into the PSP in the states at this time. They did it during the holidays, but they've hit a slump. Come on Sony.