Sony's Anti-Scalper Plan For PS5 Pro 30th Anniversary Edition Is Brilliant

It's totally fair to criticize Sony for artificially limiting production of its PlayStation 5 Pro 30th anniversary edition console to just 12,300 units, which essentially means it's a console for scalpers and not genuine fans. However, Sony Japan deserves credit for how it's handling the limited quantity of themed consoles with a rather brilliant tactic to make it more difficult for greedy scalpers and their bots to ruin the party.

In order to buy a 30th anniversary edition model in Japan, buyers must have a Sony account registered in the region and use the PlayStation Network. Additionally, they must have several hours logged with either a PlayStation 5 or PlayStation 4 console.

"The total time that either the PS5 or PS4, or both, is turned on for a total of 30 hours or more while signed in with the Sony account used to apply between Saturday, February 22, 2014 and Thursday, September 19, 2024 at 23:59," Sony Japan states (via Google Translate) on its reservation page.

There are other requirements as well, such as the Sony account needing to be linked to a buyer's My Sony ID and sign-in ID. And yes, the 30-hour requirement will not completely thwart determined scalpers. But it should help, especially since the time limit must have already been reached. That means a scalper with no skin in the game can't simply obtain a PS4 or PS5, create an account, and flip it on for a quick 30 hours.

The real shame here is that this requirement apparently only applies to Japan and not the US or other territories. It's a clever requirement that could have ensured that more 30th anniversary models would get into the hands of actual gamers at Sony's MSRP, rather than paying an exorbitant premium on eBay and elsewhere.

To that end, there are several completed listings on eBay that show the PS5 Pro 30th anniversary model selling for around $4,000 and up. There's even a current listing that is boldly trying to fetch $50,000 with the promise of home delivery by the seller. It's hard to tell if the comical listing is satire (it reads that way) or a genuine attempt at a massive payday (we wouldn't be surprised).

The PlayStation 5 Pro 30th anniversary bundle releases on November 21, 2024. Good luck to those of who are genuinely trying to procure one for your own use, and for you scalpers out there, go pound sand.