You can argue that Microsoft being a software company was always better positioned to pull off a global digital platform better than Sony. But Microsoft had virtually zero hardware and retail presence in Singapore when they launched OG Xbox and yet they managed to pull it off well. Sony already had significant existing consumer electronics businesses here way before the PS1 and PS2 days with a sizable retail presence. Sony TVs or Walkmans all had English manuals and packaging and user interfaces because they know no one outside of Japan understands their language. It was pure laziness and incompetence from them when it came to the PS1 and PS2. That's why the company doesn't make money on the whole. It's a stupidly inefficient and poorly managed company.
Of course, all of that isn't really surprising since it's coming from the company that appointed Kaz fucking Hirai to the CEO position.
Microsoft is hardly a well-managed company either but it really isn't rocket science in this day and age to create and manage a global marketing and distribution platform. Look at where Steam is and look at how much resources they started out with.
