During Sony’s financial conference call for media, investors, and analysts, Chief Financial Officer Lin Tao offered additional color on the PlayStation business.
During the livestreamed presentation, we learned that the total playtime for PlayStation users in the past quarter (between April and June) increased 6% year-on-year.
Tao also mentioned that the 148.0 billion yen operating income (basically profit) recorded by PlayStation during the quarter was a record high for the segment.
She then talked about the PlayStation Studios business, mentioning that revenue from live service games is steadily growing thanks to the MLB The Show series, Destiny 2, and Helldivers 2. It contributed over 40% of PlayStation’s first-party software revenue in Q1.
The executive admitted that the transition toward live services has not been entirely smooth, and there have been mistakes. Yet, it’s important to learn from these mistakes, and Sony has to make sure to introduce live service content.
Tao talked about the delay of another live service game, Bungie’s Marathon, mentioning that it was decided based on community feedback, and Sony believes it can further enhance the overall gaming experience “by deepening gameplay and elevating narrative immersion.”
Sony expects to launch the game within this fiscal year (my March 2026) but can’t commit to it just yet. The company expects to be able to announce a release date by the fall and doesn’t expect that it’ll be canceled.
We also learn that the independence of Bungie has been reduced compared to before its structural reform, and the studio is being brought closer to the situation of the rest of the PlayStation Studios. The integration process is ongoing.
Monthly active users for PlayStation in June 2025 (4 years and 7 months after the launch of PS5) are 32% higher compared to the 93 million in June 2018, which represents the same timeframe after the launch of PS4. They continue to consistently grow.
Content and services revenue is expected to grow approximately 50% on a US Dollar basis in the current fiscal year forecast compared to the fiscal year ended on March 31, 2019.
This exceeded the monthly active user growth, which means that not only is the number of users growing, but spending per user has also grown, contributing to the boost in revenue.
Sony expects content and services revenue “to continue to grow steadily from the next fiscal year onward, thanks to the user community Sony has cultivated.”
If you’d like to learn more about Sony’s financial results and an update on PS5 lifetime sales, you can check out our dedicated article from earlier today.
