It’s truly amazing what a new console generation will do to a corporate executive’s attitude. I’m sure if you had asked Sony Computer Entertainment Europe’s David Reeves about how he felt about Sony’s consumers he’d say something to the effect of:
"We’re very happy to be in the position to lead the market by an overwhelming majority. This Playstation 2 has proven that Sony has the best, most loyal fans in the industry. We’re excited to bring to them the very best that gaming has to offer for many years to come."
Not bad huh? It’s flattering and even a little bit emotional. That’s the right thing to say. A few years, and a hundred million fewer consoles later this is what you get:
"We’re very happy Nintendo broadened the market to where we have never gone," said Reeves. "But Sony is going places where EA and Microsoft have never been. We’re very happy about [market expansion]. It keeps growth of the industry going up and up and up instead of just recycling gamers."
That’s a surefire way to make your longtime customers feel unwanted. Of course what he really means is that they failed to sell their product to the current crop of gamers so he’s hoping Nintendo’s initiative ends up increasing the number of buyers and saving their ass. To be fair, Reeves does mention the steps Sony has taken to increase the gaming market (the Eye Toy, Singstar). But does anyone actually believe that the Eyetoy and SingStar have done nearly as much to create new gamers as Nintendo has?
With customer appreciation like this, it’s a wonder a lot of their one hundred million fans didn’t follow them into the next generation. What really gets me is that there is no reason to have said that. Referring to your customers as recyclable is just plain dumb.
[via Next-Gen]
