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Amazon.co.jp (hereafter, Amazon) has started invitational sales of PlayStation 4 (hereafter, PS4). You can only place an order after requesting an invitation and receiving the invitation email.
Previously, the current product “PlayStation 4 Jet Black 500GB (CUH-2200AB01)” was normally sold on Amazon. However, at the moment, it is an invitation sale, and you can not purchase it unless you request an invitation and win. In addition, on Amazon, the model number PS4 whose production is discontinued by the manufacturer is on sale at the marketplace. These sellers are sellers, not Amazon.
The new-generation PlayStation 5 (PS5) has long been sold by lottery at many stores, not just Amazon. Under such circumstances, PS4, which is the previous generation machine, was also targeted for lottery sales this time. Yodobashi.com, Yamada Webcom, Joshin web shop, etc. are sold out without lottery sales. As far as we can confirm, there are no new sales of “PlayStation 4 Jet Black 500GB (CUH-2200AB01)” on other major sales sites.
In other words, it seems that not only the PS5 but also the PS4 are in short supply. This supply situation is probably the reason why PS4 has switched from regular sales to invitation sales on Amazon this time. Regarding PS4, there was a report in the past that Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) planned to end production at the end of 2021, but withdrew it (Bloomberg). On the other hand, SIE’s spokesperson denied the existence of such a plan and said that they continued to produce and sell PS4 in parallel with PS5 (Netorabo）。
In September of this year, PS5 will start shipping the “CFI-1200” series, which is a minor change model. It has a new processor and a new SOC from AMD called Oberon Plus. The renovation of the SOC, which is the heart of the car, is a minor change, but it is a big one, and it can be considered as a stepping stone for further production increases (Related article）。
Also, at the “PlayStation Partner Awards 2022 Japan Asia” held the other day, SIE director Kiichiro Urata commented on the shipment of PS5. In Japan, a system is in place to significantly increase the number of PS5 supplies over the year-end and New Year holidays. Hideaki Nishino, SIE Platform Experience SVP (Senior Vice President), also said,Famitsu interviewIn contrast, it suggests an increase in PS5 production. The situation is expected to improve significantly in 2023. It will be interesting to see how the distribution of PS4 and PS5 changes in the future.