DFC Intelligence issued out a new report making predictions on the upcoming console releases and their impact on the market. In the report DFC Intelligence speculates that Sony and Microsoft are more than likely going to miss their holiday 2020 release dates for the new console generation. DFC Intelligence claims that the likely delay will come from disrupted supply chains as COVID-19 (Coronavirus) spreads and more businesses either close or switch to remote work.
Coronavirus is likely to have a major short-term impact on the delivery of both systems. There is a strong likelihood one or both systems will not make a 2020 launch. If the systems do launch, supply will likely be constrained and initial pricing could be higher than expected.
DFC Intelligence did note later in the report that the novel virus is currently in a very unpredictable state. They said that if the virus situation would clear in the next few weeks there may be enough times to reestablish the supply lines to hit the current release date although the market will have already been heavily damaged and the consoles will most likely release at a higher than normal price.
AMD, who supplies parts for both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, said that they are still on track to meet their quotas as the panic in China has started to subside. Although, AMD still is wary of a potential disruption as COVID-19 and the following panic is still spreading in Europe along with North America.
Despite the potential setbacks, DFC Intelligence and IHS Markit’s Piers Harding-Rolls are expecting that sales on the next-generation consoles will surpass the launch milestones set by the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. They claim that consumer demand is higher than ever and that the market base is exponentially growing. DFC Intelligence expects that the demand for the consoles will be larger than what Microsoft or Sony will initially supply, even if the systems are not impacted by the virus.