Sony Group has announced a new increase in the global prices of its PlayStation 5 consoles, including a $100 rise in the United States. This is the second time the company has increased prices in less than a year as it faces higher costs for important components such as memory chips.
The tech industry is currently focusing heavily on building artificial intelligence systems, which has pushed memory manufacturers to prioritise chips used in data centres. This has reduced the supply of chips available for consumer devices like gaming consoles, making production more expensive.
According to the new prices, which will take effect from April 2, the standard PlayStation 5 in the United States will now cost $649.99 instead of $549.99. The digital version will be priced at $599.99, while the high-end PS5 Pro will cost $899.99. The price of the PlayStation Portal remote player will also increase from $199.99 to $249.99.
Similar price increases will also be introduced in Europe and Japan. The company said the decision was made after carefully reviewing the rising costs in global supply chains.
Experts believe that these price increases may slow down the growth of the video-game market this year. Epic Games, the maker of Fortnite, recently said weak console sales were one of the reasons behind its decision to cut 1,000 jobs.
During the October to December holiday season, sales of the PlayStation 5 fell by 16 percent compared to the previous year, reaching eight million units. The console has now been in the market for about six years.
Sony had last increased the price of the PS5 in the United States by around $50 in August last year. Microsoft also increased the prices of its Xbox consoles last year.
