Ex-PlayStation boss calls Sony's plan to kill physical disc production
'fairly dramatic' and remembers a time when 'digital sales were zero percent because we didn't have a digital market'

Date:
Fri, 03 Jul 2026 12:57:04 +0000

Description:
Former PlayStation boss Shawn Layden says Sony's decision to scrap physical discs is 'fairly dramatic' and thinks this means the PS6 won't have a disc drive.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Former PlayStation boss Shawn Layden says Sony's decision to scrap physical discs is "fairly dramatic" Layden recalls a time when digital sales "were zero percent" because Sony didn't have a market He believes the move will also mean the PS6 won't have a disc drive Former PlayStation Worldwide Studios boss Shawn Layden has shared his opinion on Sony's decision to stop producing physical discs and its plan to move all-digital, calling it "a fairly dramatic decision."

Speaking in an interview with Eurogamer following the bombshell news, the PlayStation veteran of 32 years confirmed that he had "no idea it was going
to happen and "don't necessarily agree with it." As for why he thinks Sony
has made the decision, he suggested, "Maybe it's just too prohibitively expensive to stamp out discs," but believes that any big move to discontinue
a product, feature, or model is "largely" a "straight spreadsheet
[decision]." Latest Videos From Watch full video here:

"What are disc sales compared to digital sales? And I'm old enough to
remember when digital sales were like 10 percent - I'm old enough to remember when digital sales were zero percent because we didn't have a digital market! And that number just grew over time," Layden said.

The ex-PlayStation leader suggested the COVID pandemic played a role in accelerating the purchase and consumption of digital games over physical, and believes that Sony's decision could mean the PS6 won't have a disc drive. You may like The end of physical game copies is coming, and retailers are not happy Analysts say Sony's digital-only plan 'almost certainly guarantees that the PS6 wont arrive until 2028 at the earliest' and won't have a disc drive
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Analysts have also determined that the next-gen PS6 console will launch in late 2028 and won't have a disc drive , or at the very least, one will be
sold separately "to play older PS4 and PS5 games on disc."

In fact, Layden revealed that ditching the PlayStation's disc drive was something the company considered for a year while he worked there. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

"I've been asked this question every year for the last 20 years. 'When are
you guys going to just give up on the disc drive?' My feeling with that was always: well, when I get to a place where I'm comfortable enough to believe that worldwide, broadband throughput is good enough to support that download experience, good enough to reach the majority of customers," Layden said.

He clarified, "Majority does not mean entirety, so there is a point, a
tipping point, where if I have 80 percent of the opportunity, which
represents 95 percent of the revenue source, what's my incentive to keep the lights on for the other 20 percent if it's effectively only 5 percent of the business? See what I'm saying? At some point, it just becomes obvious that we can't keep this whole thing running just for this very small slice of opportunity."

While Layden admits that Sony had always been "pretty good" at determining
the risk of overestimating regional internet infrastructure, "because unlike Xbox, PlayStation had a wider global fanbase, and not just in the numbers,
but in the reach, because Sony Corp had reach all over the world," there are also players who do not have access to the internet, such as people in military bases. What to read next In a huge blow to game ownership, PlayStation confirms end of physical games mere days after GTA 6's disc-less pre-orders Sony's physical game disc elimination may ruin the future of
gaming These are the physical PlayStation releases we'll treasure forever

"The idea that they could still buy a PlayStation 4 game, throw it in a machine, and play was important. You don't want to leave those people
behind," Layden said.

"I don't know what went on in those conversations, but it's a fairly dramatic decision."

As Sony plans to scrap physical discs, there are also concerns about the inability to resell games or buy them second-hand in the future, which Layden said "used to be a huge factor" in the business, but the rise of digital
games "kind of quashed that used-game business, and made it hard for folks
who were making a nickel in the secondary market by selling them."

However, he doesn't necessarily believe this drove Sony's decision because it's been happening over time, but thinks "we've reached some kind of homeostasis where it's in a weird sort of balance."

"Second-hand gaming still occurs, obviously, but it's not material anymore to the business to worry about, I think," Layden added.

Following Sony's announcement, new reports claimed that the company is
testing a disc-to-digital feature for existing consoles and could also
release a next-gen Project Helix console without a disc drive .

While there's no telling whether Microsoft plans to follow Sony's all-digital business practice later on, Layden believes the huge decision could influence other companies, including Microsoft and Nintendo, to follow suit.

"Certainly, this is an industry where if one company, particularly the leader of the industry, makes a decision of this magnitude, that's going to heavily influence what the other ones do," he said. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button! The best gaming consoles All the best consoles of this generation

Read our full guide to the best gaming consoles 1. Best overall: PlayStation 5 Slim 2. Best budget: Xbox Series S 3. Best handheld: Nintendo Switch 2 4. Most powerful: PlayStation 5 Pro



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/gaming/ex-playstation-boss-calls-sonys-plan-to-kill- physical-disc-production-fairly-dramatic-and-remembers-a-time-when-digital-sal es-were-zero-percent-because-we-didnt-have-a-digital-market


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