Sony has made an announcement on the future of physical media and its role in the future of the PlayStation. The announcement states that no more physical media CD/DVD will be available from January 2028.
Sony states consumers prefer digital formats over physical. But is this true, and will new games only be available digitally from the PlayStation Store and participating stores?
But there may be more to this than consumer trends. When you own the disc for a game, you have various options you don’t have when owning the digital game.
When you own the disc for a game, you own it, meaning you can keep it or sell it. (We think Sony doesn’t like this anymore). You can buy a game for £50 and sell it for £30, meaning you only paid £20 for your game.
With digital games, they are not transferable, so you complete a game, you always own it, and you cannot sell it like DVD media.
Another advantage of DVD media is the cost of buying. When it’s a digital v DVD, how expensive is it to purchase digital games on PlayStation Store? As an example, Gran Turismo 7 digital was £60 on PlayStation Store, but the disc version was new and sealed on eBay for £30. That’s a saving of £30.
Most games on the PlayStation Store are overpriced, and in 2028 you may see prices rise further as Sony takes control.
This is what they want to start charging what they want (ripping us off) and controlling everything just for profit.
There has been outcry over this announcement, and we can understand why. It’s only Sony that says people prefer digital, but with higher game prices to come and unsellable digital media, how long can it last?
It’s documented online that consumers are unhappy and willing to ditch their PS consoles in protest.
