Sony recently launched “Live TV on PS5,” an offering that gives all PlayStation 5 owners access to 100+ channels of free ad-supported TV and movies. Keith Le Goy, the chairman of Sony Pictures TV, recently discussed the reasoning behind launching the service and why he believes it represents “one plus one equaling a lot more than two.”
Speaking to Variety, Le Goy said PS5 already has 40-50 million people who are “incredibly engaged” with gaming, but also love movies and TV shows. Therefore, he said the company saw an opportunity to target these people, who might not otherwise watch linear TV. He said this is a “very hard-to-reach audience,” and also one that is “very attractive” to advertisers.
People can watch anything on the Live TV on PS5 platform for free, in exchange for sitting through ads. It works similarly to other free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) services, including Tubi, Roku, and Pluto.
As with most things in life, Live TV on PS5 came about in part to make money, and Le Goy said he believes Sony can achieve big success here, if it executes.
“So if we can give that audience something that they’re going to like in an environment that they are comfortable with, give our channel partners an audience that they are going to be going after and give their advertisers an audience that’s valuable for them,” he said. “That is one plus one equaling a lot more than two.”
The executive went on to say Sony is uniquely positioned for success here because the company also owns PlayStation. There are precious few groups of people as passionate and dedicated as gamers, and Le Goy said this could translate to big success if Live TV on PS5 works out.
“That’s the other thing that Sony has, that frankly a lot of other companies would love to have, is a gaming business and the level of engagement with gamers and gaming fans. That is what PlayStation has.”
Sony tried live TV on PS5 before with its PlayStation Vue service. However, that was a paid service that asked people to pay at least $50/month, at a time when people were increasingly cord-cutting. Vue officially shut down in 2020.