There's been a computer chip shortage for quite some time. This has stunted the production speed of the latest games consoles, including the PS5 and Xbox Series X, as well as the fanciest PC graphics cards.
A lack of semiconductors has been a real pain for people wanting to get their hands on the best recent games, such as the fantastic PS5 hit Deathloop.
The issue stems from a whole load of sources, from the Covid-19 pandemic and natural disasters in manufacturing countries to shipping bottlenecks and worker shortages. Check out this piece from Marketplace to learn more.
However, it looks like that problem might be turned on its head in the not-too-distant future.
Market intelligence firm the International Data Corporation released an article on the semiconductor market (shout out to The Register for boosting it).
According to the IDC, the semiconductor market is set to grow by 17.3% in 2021, and potentially reach overcapacity by 2023. The industry should see normal levels of production midway through 2022.
"Despite the current Covid-19 wave, consumption remains healthy," the IDC reported. "Front-end manufacturing is starting to meet demand in 3Q, however, larger issues and shortages will remain in back-end manufacturing and materials."
Outside of the business talk, an oversupply of semiconductor chips should at least mean normal service resumes at some point soon when it comes to grabbing a PS5. No more signing up to auto-alerts when waiting for a tiny shipment of consoles to drop at some obscure site you're not sure is legal or not. It's just a shame it'll take a fair while to happen.
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