Phil Spencer: Sony buying third party games, all to do with money, not market share

[Mmm_fish_tacos]

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has said that market share has nothing to do with the third-party exclusive we are seeing on PS4, it's all about the money.
Speaking to GameSpot about third-party exclusives on PS4, Spencer said: "So, they don't "gobble" the deals up. They buy them. You know, I read the same things you do, and I know some people think it's somehow less expensive to sign third-party exclusives if you have a bigger market-share. I can tell you, it has nothing to do with market share."
He added: "When you go in to do a deal, with a third party, that third party has its own view of the global market and the value of it. And they should, they should think about their assets and how valuable they are, just like anyone would when they are selling their goods."
http://www.videogamer.com/xboxone/halo_5/news/sony_is_buying_third-party_exclusives_for_ps4_says_xbox_boss.html

[Mmm_fish_tacos]

Okay Phil, you can shut your mouth now.

[Aura7541]

Definitely not true when it comes to Japanese games.

[the-pi-guy]

"When you go in to do a deal, with a third party, that third party has its own view of the global market and the value of it. And they should, they should think about their assets and how valuable they are, just like anyone would when they are selling their goods."

Of course, and depending on who is asking they might have a different value of their market.  

[Mmm_fish_tacos]

Definitely not true when it comes to Japanese games.

or how much exclusivity cost.

[darkknightkryta]

Yes cause Sony has so much more money to spend than Microsoft *rolls eyes*

[ethomaz]

Loled hard this time.
Hypocrisy

It even more ironic how people on chertz take this guy like a God.
He only say lies and nonsense.

[Riderz1337]

I find that extremely hard to believe.

[Legend]

I can't help but assume the quote in the OP has been taken out of context.

Excluding Japanese games, it is all to do with money. But the amount of money has all to do with market share. The price to buy for Microsoft has probably gone up this gen, and the price to buy for Sony has gone down.

I wonder if PlayStation's budget is actually larger than Xbox's though. We know PS4 is making more money so maybe management is willing to invest more back into it for software.

[darkknightkryta]

I can't help but assume the quote in the OP has been taken out of context.

Excluding Japanese games, it is all to do with money. But the amount of money has all to do with market share. The price to buy for Microsoft has probably gone up this gen, and the price to buy for Sony has gone down.

I wonder if PlayStation's budget is actually larger than Xbox's though. We know PS4 is making more money so maybe management is willing to invest more back into it for software.

I would assume it maintained the same.  Like, their marketing budget is higher, but I don't think they're using that much money.  Quick, someone look at the financials and see if operating costs are higher now than before.

[Legend]

I would assume it maintained the same.  Like, their marketing budget is higher, but I don't think they're using that much money.  Quick, someone look at the financials and see if operating costs are higher now than before.

Basing it off financials would be hard. Sony keeps changing the division and there were hardware R&D costs the past few years.

[BasilZero]

Cant beat them ,join them MS.

I cant wait for Halo to become playable on my Playstation 5 next gen.

[the-pi-guy]

I can't help but assume the quote in the OP has been taken out of context.

Excluding Japanese games, it is all to do with money. But the amount of money has all to do with market share. The price to buy for Microsoft has probably gone up this gen, and the price to buy for Sony has gone down.

I wonder if PlayStation's budget is actually larger than Xbox's though. We know PS4 is making more money so maybe management is willing to invest more back into it for software.

Microsoft appears to be doubling-down on its first-party titles while Sony is securing a lot of third-party deals. How difficult is it to be successful, in terms of market share, when Sony is gobbling up so many third-party deals now? How difficult does that make your job?

So, they don't "gobble" the deals up. They buy them. You know, I read the same things you do, and I know some people think it's somehow less expensive to sign third-party exclusives if you have a bigger market-share. I can tell you, it has nothing to do with market share.

When you go in to do a deal, with a third party, that third party has its own view of the global market and the value of it. And they should, they should think about their assets and how valuable they are, just like anyone would when they are selling their goods.

I ran first party before I took on the job as head of Xbox. And when I was picked to do this job, I think people would have expected that my focus would be on first party. My view is, there are some bellwether companies out there in terms of first-party games, like Nintendo, which has incredibly strong IP, and a breadth of characters and games to play, which allows them to do a great job in lighting up peoples' interests.


I'll try to go back to the question and rephrase. Sony is getting a lot of exclusive deals with third party studios...

Well, it's buying them.

Yes, fair point, it's buying them, and it's buying a lot of them, and Microsoft isn't. I wonder if that makes your job much harder, I wonder if that's a case of two different strategies, and I wonder why it's happening in the first place.

So we're making a conscious decision to focus on our first-party games. It doesn't make it harder or easier, it's just a decision. I do think that building up first-party exclusives is creatively more difficult than signing a deal, just by the nature of what it is. But I'll point out too that Sony has some great first-party franchises. I'm a big fan of Uncharted, I thought that looked great at E3. I really admire the team at Naughty Dog, the team at Polyphony.

For us, right now Xbox is in a stretch where all its first-party teams are doing an incredible job. I'm proud of that as the head of Xbox, and as the head of first-party. To be able to open a show with Quantum Break, to be able to close it with Halo Wars, and to have Dave Jones and Hideki Kamiya on stage in between, makes me incredibly proud. Oh I should mention Forza too...

[Xevross]

Phil Spencer is full of shame. I really don't like the guy at all. I had this opinion before this quote, btw

[darkknightkryta]

Phil Spencer is full of shame. I really don't like the guy at all. I had this opinion before this quote, btw

Two years straight that they had to "cut" content to put into Gamescom.  Come Gamescom, one new game announcement and stuff they "should" have shown at E3...