Overview
- Sony confirmed it will stop producing physical discs for new PlayStation games from January 2028 while allowing publishers to reorder copies of titles released before that cutoff and retailers to sell boxed download codes.
- UK and other retail groups have condemned the move as a loss of consumer choice, citing uses for discs such as lending, resale and long‑term preservation and noting the UK disc market was worth roughly £300 million in 2025.
- Legal escalation is already underway: Dutch group SM&C says the decision strengthens its €400 million lawsuit over the PlayStation Store’s typical 30% cut, and Mexican lawmakers are preparing a complaint to the national antitrust regulator.
- Sony’s major disc facility in Thalgau, Austria is being repurposed with about €30 million in new equipment and staff retraining to make optical microlenses as disc output is forecast to fall sharply by 2028.
- Public backlash has grown with petitions topping 300,000 signatures, gamers weighing platform moves, and analysts warning the loss of discs could remove the second‑hand market, concentrate pricing power on Sony’s store, and prompt more lawsuits and regulatory scrutiny.