PlayStation, Sony’s line of video game consoles, announced Wednesday that it will end production of physical game discs beginning in 2028.
The announcement sparked backlash in the gaming community as critics accused the company of attacking digital ownership.
Companies, like Domino’s Pizza, took to social media to make fun of the Japanese conglomerate.
The PS5, Sony’s latest gaming console, sold versions with a disc drive and versions that were digital only.
Sid Shuman, a senior director at Sony, said the change was a “response to shifting trends in consumer preference.” However, Circana reported that 82% of PS5 consoles sold were those with disc drives.
Companies poke fun of PlayStation
Numerous brands took to social media to poke fun at PlayStation for its update.
Domino’s, the first to react, announced that beginning next year, it will offer only digital pizzas.
Kentucky Fried Chicken posted a video referencing the early 2000s ad that attempted to deter digital piracy.
PlayStation’s competitor Xbox, announced the same day that it is working on a way for players to download their games onto disks to allow them to own a physical copy.
Criticisms stem partially from the fact that buying a digital download is different from owning a physical copy of a game.
PlayStation’s terms of service says, “When you order or purchase a product from PlayStation Store, you buy a personal license to use that product for private, non-commercial use. That license is not transferable unless your local applicable laws say it must be. This means you can use a product in the ways described in the license, but do not own the product.”
Although companies rarely delete games from users’ digital libraries, the move is not impossible.
Why is Sony stopping physical disc production?
In the announcement, Sony said “As consumer preferences and the broader entertainment industry continue to shift away from physical discs to digital, physical game disc production for all new games releasing on PlayStation consoles will be discontinued starting January 2028.”
Games released before 2028 will not be impacted by the announcement, Shuman wrote in a PlayStation blog post.
The option will limit consumer options but will help the company save on production and distribution costs.
Although consoles with a disc player are purchased more often than the digital-only options, G2A reports that 85% of games purchased are digital copies.