Sony executive on third-party games: ‘PlayStation is just a plastic box without content’

In a recent interview, a Sony senior executive opened up about why games from other studios are the real heart of the PlayStation business. Christian Svensson, VP of second- and third-party content at Sony Interactive Entertainment, is of the view that without a library of jaw-dropping hits, the console itself doesn’t mean much. He also revealed that SIE CEO Hideaki Nishino, who has a product-oriented background, has been very vocal about this view.

Svensson discussed this topic during a wide-ranging chat with The Game Business. The discussion mainly focused on why Sony charges a 30% commission on PlayStation Store purchases and how exactly this helps developers worldwide.

Svensson stated that PlayStation has a long-standing history of being a third-party-friendly platform and emphasized that the company is working hard to maintain that stance.

He noted that Sony has funded more than 120 projects this console generation, and that alone supports an estimated 10,000 developers and publishers through an intricate network of dedicated teams and subsidiaries. He said those efforts are the reason why the PlayStation Store fee matters. It’s not a means to reap a profit, but to maintain a balanced investment ecosystem.

In the interview, Svensson explained his philosophy behind PlayStation and said:

“If you talk to SIE CEO Nishino-san, who has a very product-led background, he’ll say, ‘PlayStation is just a plastic box without content.’ And third parties are the lion’s share of the content. So, it’s critical that we continue to lean in and drive, and be ambitious about bringing new voices to the platform. If we ever stop doing that, the industry will stop growing. We have, as an industry leader, to drive and push the whole industry, not just our business.”

He continued:

“I’m in an incredibly privileged position to have amazing visibility into what games will be for the next 3, 4, 5 years. I literally cannot explain to you… Last year was an amazing year for games. This year will be even better. Next year will be better still. The trajectory of content is unbelievably positive. And we as an industry should be super optimistic about where we’re going despite the headwinds.”

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