Update (February 19): Added response from Sony India about this story
The Sony PlayStation 5 is in big demand in India just like the world over. And just like in all the other countries, the PS5 is in short supply considering the demand all over. And it seems like some Sony autorised retailers are taking advantage of the situation in India and asking for marked up prices on the restocks coming in.
Sony has apparently told retailers that the PS5 will not be available for a second round of pre-orders before March 2021. And armed with that knowledge some retailers are accepting order for PS5 at prices as high as Rs 65,000 despite the official pricing being Rs 49,990.
According to a report by IGN India, several people have come forward to confirm this situation. Apparently a retailer by the name of Kalra Electronics from Karol Bagh in Delhi is asking for a price between Rs 65,000 to Rs 75,000 for a PS5 with warranty.
@Sony @PlayStationIN this is Playstation’s authorised dealer scalping PS5 named “Kalra Electronics” located in Karol Bagh, Delhi. Instead of Rs.50k, he is demanding 65-75k rupees for PS5. This is the situation of your “AUTHORISED STAR DEALERS” in India. Please take action pic.twitter.com/NIRUjjvaAhFebruary 9, 2021
Kalra Electronics joining Gameshopee (and some Sony Centers) in scalping official PS5 stock. Amazing selection of authorised dealers we have. https://t.co/ZFZM8EUwL8February 11, 2021
Sony aware of the situation
The report mentions that the company is aware of the situation and has even initiated an audit of its entire retail network after launching the Sony PS5 in India. But the company has not taken any official step to curb this practice yet.
While only select stores in cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru were made aware of Sony's plans prior to the launch of the PS5, most stores in Chennai and Delhi were made privy. But it seems like Sony was negligent when it came to vetting the retailers to ensure such misappropriations don't occur.
The launch of the PS5 in India has been mired in controversy with online retailers like Croma and Reliance Digital cancelling orders due to over booking compared to actual stocks. And the controversy has now extended to the offline sector as well. We will update the story with more information from Sony.
Following the publication of the story Sony issued a statement on the situation, "We have taken serious note of the feedback of our patrons that have been made on our social media handle and reportedly on other platforms. We sincerely expect that the third party retail partners operate in compliance of the legal frame work of our country and follow ethical business practices. We have ‘zero tolerance policy’ for any practices that are inconsistent to the afore-said. We have taken steps, as deemed appropriate and available with company including but not limited to discontinuing our association with such channel partners."
