PS Plus Has Lost Subscribers Active Users Since COVID Lockdowns Ended

PS Plus Has Lost Subscribers, Active Users Since COVID Lockdowns Ended

For the first time, PS Plus has experienced a rather significant decline in subscriptions, losing 1.3 million subscribers in the last quarter.

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The Q1 financial report for Sony’s fiscal year 2021 shows a noticeable decline in PlayStation Plus subscriptions, which the company blames on 2020’s coronavirus-related lockdowns. Membership numbers for the service have slowly picked up steam in recent years, with Sony recording an impressive 47.6 million PS Plus subscribers as of Spring 2021.

In Q1 of the 2020 fiscal year, the subscription service boasted over 45 million active users, a number that ballooned to 45.9 million during the second quarter. By February of this year, PS Plus had secured more than 47.4 million subscribers before the aforementioned 47.6 million figure settled into place during the month of April. Such growth rose on the back of global lockdowns, leaving many with a need for more easily accessible ways to entertain themselves. PlayStation’s Play at Home initiative helped wonders in this regard, allowing PlayStation owners to download several games for free regardless of PS Plus status. Since COVID restrictions continue to lift, it stands to reason that some are relying less on at-home entertainment.

Sony’s Q1 earnings report for FY 2021 reveals PlayStation Plus’ subscriber count currently sits at 46.3 million, a 1.3 million decline compared to the last recorded figure of 47.6 million. Years of data collated by ResetEra users indicate such a drop is most notable due to the fact it marks the first time PS Plus has experienced a significant decline between quarters. As noted by VGC, however, Sony doesn’t seem too concerned. The publication transcribed a webcast wherein Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki cited 2020’s stay-at-home restrictions as a reason for the initial increases in game activity. With said restrictions coming to an end, game activity is taking a hit. Totoki said in part,

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“Of course, 104m is not a strong number, but are we looking at it as a declining trend? We don’t think so. We are trying to analyze different elements, but there are no conspicuous trends that we can capture. Maybe this month or next month we will have to continue to watch and do an analysis.

“At the risk of repetition, may I say that last year the stay-at-home demand was so significant in hindsight, so compared to that period last year as a trend of course [it’s declined]. [But] compared to fiscal 2019 there is an increase.”

Totoki is correct in his assessment that PS Plus membership has still skyrocketed in recent years. As of June 2019, 36.2 million users boasted subscriptions. That nearly 10 million more members have joined in the two years since is nothing to scoff at, regardless of recent declines.

In addition to offering online play, PS Plus rewards subscribers with free games on a monthly basis that remain playable so long as the membership stays active. The PlayStation Plus lineup for August 2021 just went live, too, giving users access to Hunter’s Arena Legends, Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville, and Tennis World Tour 2.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/ps-plus-subscription-numbers-down/

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