Den tidligere PlayStation-chef Shawn Layden mener, at spilindustrien står over for samtlige store trusler, iblandt hvilke en af dem er megavirksomheder såsom Netflix, Amazon og Google, der også ønsker en bid af den kage, der er gaming-markedet.
I en samtale om truslerne med GamesIndustry.biz' Investment Summit udtalte Layden: "First, consolidation can be an enemy of creativity. I also think rising costs in gaming are an existential threat to all of us. And the entry of non-endemics into the sector - otherwise known as the 'barbarians at the gate.'"
Det virker umiddelbart, som om Layden ikke er fan af opkøb og konsolidering, men derefter siger han:
"Right now we see all the big players going, 'Oh, gaming? It's bringing in billions of dollars a year? I want a piece of that' And so we have Google, Netflix, Apple and Amazon wanting to get piece and trying to disrupt out industry. I'm hoping gaming will be the first industry where we disrupt ourselves. Where it doesn't take a Google or an Amazon to completely flip the table. We should be smart enough to see these changes coming and prepare ourselves for that eventuality."
Har han fat i noget? Er Netflix, Google og Amazon trusler for spilindustrien?