- Primary Subject: Sony Physical Media & PlayStation Consoles
- Key Update: Following its announcement to phase out physical PlayStation games by 2028, Sony has begun a €30M overhaul of its Thalgau manufacturing plant to transition employees into car-lens tech instead.
- Status: Confirmed
- Last Verified: July 3, 2026
- Quick Answer: Sony is transitioning its Thalgau disc factory workers to focus on micro-optics, proving the company's shift away from physical game discs is locked in.
Recently, Sony announced that starting in January 2028, they will no longer be producing physical discs for new PlayStation games.
While they will still be making discs for existing games or games coming out before that time, plenty of up-and-coming games will only be available digitally. This has caused a divide in the gaming community, with some happy with the decision and others resenting the lack of physical media.
Well, it appears Sony is already taking steps away from physical discs - and the proof is in their production sites.
Sony Reportedly Reassigning Staff From Manufacturing Discs To Other Products
On July 1, Austrian news site ORF.at released a report detailing the conditions at Sony's largest disc production site. The site is located in Thalgau, Australia, and reportedly used to produce 600,000 discs per day.
According to Dietmar Tanza, the CEO of DADC (which manufactures Sony's optical media, including PlayStation games), physical disc games currently account for 50% of its volume, with 20% being new orders. However, in 2028, the volume is expected to be 10% of what it is today.
READ MORE: Sony to End Physical Disc Production for PlayStation Games in 2028
There are 300 people employed at the plant. They were told on Wednesday the company would be restructuring due to Sony's decision. However, Tanzer stated no layoffs are planned.
Sony has reportedly been anticipating this shift for some time. As a result, the plant made a pivot by investing €30 million in new equipment intended to produce optical microlenses.
Markus Streible, DADC's head of Micro Optics, stated that this will be a new area of business for Sony. He told the publication, “Micro optics is the miniaturization of optical systems and elements and serves to focus and direct light in the smallest possible space. One application would be, for example, a car turn signal that is projected onto asphalt.”
It seems Sony has been prepared for a while now. The employees have already been trained to test the new equipment, so it appears hope for overturning this decision is all for naught.
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