- Primary Subject: PlayStation / Sony Physical Discs Phase-Out
- Key Update: Sony CFO Lin Tao confirmed during the Q1 FY 2026 earnings call that PlayStation will not reverse its decision to stop manufacturing physical game discs starting in January 2028 despite ongoing player backlash.
- Status: Confirmed (Official Sony Earnings Call)
- Last Verified: July 31, 2026
- Quick Answer: Sony will stop manufacturing physical PlayStation discs in January 2028, and CFO Lin Tao confirmed they will not backtrack despite player backlash.
On July 31, Sony held their Q1 FY 2026 earnings call. During the presentation, Sony's CFO, Lin Tao, spoke about the recent backlash PlayStation has received.
When Sony announced that they would cease physical discs for games coming out in 2028, players were in immediate uproar. Though most people bought their games digitally, there was still a community that appreciated physical discs. The announcement came a few weeks after it was revealed GTA 6 would be releasing a box with a code for its physical versions.
Gamers started banding together, hosting blackouts and boycotting PlayStation as a whole. Well, it looks like Sony acknowledges the heat - but it isn't affecting anything.
Sony CFO States PlayStation Will Continue With Their Digital-Only Mission
During the Q&A portion of the earnings call, Sony's CFO Lin Tao addressed the backlash over their decision to stop producing physical discs in 2028. They stated that they've been thinking of going all-digital for a while now, and despite the backlash, they will not be backtracking.
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She stated, "We announced that from January 2028 onwards we will no longer be manufacturing game discs, so [we announced it] one and a half years ahead. There are various reasons we made this decision, the biggest being that digitalisation of content overall has been progressing; that’s the big factor. It’s not just for PlayStation, but for all kinds of content; digitalisation is progressing."
She acknowledged the backlash the decision caused, but it seems unlikely they'll change their mind. Instead, they plan to focus on how they can engage gamers in this future digital-only ecosystem.
"Games are loved by many people; it’s a form of entertainment that’s loved by people, and it’s connected to people’s fond memories in many cases, and so we understand those emotions. We want to consider that, and in the future digital ecosystem, ‘how do we engage the gamers’ is something that we would like to continue to explore."
Sony has definitely been making strides in terms of pushing for a digital-only gaming era. It was recently discovered that Sony patented a controller with no physical buttons - instead, it will feature a touchscreen where players can customize where the D-Pad, sticks, and action buttons go, should the patent actually come to life.
PlayStation doesn't seem to be changing its mind, despite the PSN blackout we faced recently, which caused players to question how a digital-only era would be if servers crashed. Looks like we'll have to see how Sony ensures gamers will stay once physical discs are phased out.
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