Sales effect of a software product series’ length in Japan

Abstract Previous studies have examined changes in software sales using the network effect theory framework based on hardware sales. This study aims to examine the effects of a software series’ length on software sales. We also investigate the moderating effects of how a platform’s life cycle influences the series’ sales. We adopted the double-jeopardy theory and brand loyalty discussions for both products and corporations. To test our hypotheses, we analysed 11,863 video game software samples in the Japanese market, addressing the following research questions: How does the length of a software series influence sales in terms of both the product and the corporate brand? How is the influence of the software series’ length on sales moderated by the stage of the platform’s lifecycle? Our findings show that a longer software series led to higher software sales for both the specific series as well as other software released simultaneously by the company. Moreover, we found that the positive relationship between the video game series’ length and sales of all the firm’s software was stronger when the platform had matured. By examining firm behaviours, such as software series releases and their effects, we confirmed that software series’ length is a core factor stimulating its sales and that of other series produced by a company. We also examined the impact of a platform’s lifecycle on video game sales. Our study contributes to the field by extending the literature on the effect of brand loyalty and the double-jeopardy theory.