EU Claims It Can’t Block PlayStation’s Move Away From Game Discs

While players keep signing petitions and flooding PlayStation social pages, the EU says it doesn’t have the leverage to stop Sony—or any other publisher—from moving away from game discs.

Sony’s choice to end physical releases has triggered a fresh wave of anger from players who don’t want an all-digital future. The dispute centers on new PS5 titles beginning their disc-free era with launches from January 2028 onward, which many expect to carry into the PS6 generation as well. One prominent petition urging Sony to reverse course is edging toward 300,000 signatures, and over the last few days some PS5 owners have posted screenshots claiming their PlayStation Plus plans were canceled.

Given the EU’s reputation for consumer protection, some fans were hopeful regulators might intervene. However, Ireland’s EU Commissioner has been blunt: Sony is not something the EU can force to keep using physical media.

Quick scan: what the EU says

• The EU says it cannot stop Sony (or any company) from ending disc releases.
• Ireland’s EU Commissioner said decisions about game formats fall under commercial and contractual freedom.
• Consumer rules in the EU focus on informing players about contract duration and conditions for termination.
• The EU has previously said it cannot require games to remain playable after commercial support ends due to intellectual property protections.
• Analysts argue backlash is unlikely to change Sony’s position, even with large PlayStation Plus cancellations.

In remarks shared through Irish media coverage, the European Commissioner for consumer protection, Michael McGrath, explained that regulators can’t override business and contract choices as long as consumer rights are respected under EU and national law. “It does come down to commercial and contractual freedoms,” he said, adding that companies remain free to offer games and services in the way they choose when consumer protections are maintained.

He also referenced the need to consider whether a European citizens initiative should be pursued on the broader question of whether games should keep being available after a newer version is released. The point was less about agreeing with fans and more about what the EU can practically enforce.

A major part of the disc backlash is rooted in ownership, preservation, and the long-term playability of games once stores stop selling them. Last month, the Stop Killing Games campaign hit a wall when the European Commission said it couldn’t introduce a legal requirement that would ensure video games stay playable after they are no longer offered for purchase. The reason given was the structure of existing intellectual property rights under EU copyright rules, which grant rights holders exclusive control over their works.

Still, the Commission did point to current EU consumer legislation that obliges publishers and developers to provide details about how long a contract lasts and what conditions allow it to end before a customer commits. At the same time, the Commission indicated it would talk with the games industry and consumer groups to create an industry code of conduct for handling a game’s “end of life.”

With the EU’s hands apparently tied, the big question is whether online outrage can pressure Sony into reversing its plan. Analysts are skeptical. Dr. Serkan Toto, CEO of Japanese industry consultancy Kantan Games, argued that even substantial PlayStation Plus cancellations would be too small to force a change in strategy.

“I sympathize with physical media fans, but Sony will not reverse this decision,” Toto said. He added that Sony has likely anticipated the reaction online and is effectively waiting for the controversy to blow over.

To illustrate the scale, Toto claimed Sony has more than 120 million active PlayStation users and that roughly 50 million subscribe to PlayStation Plus. He framed a hypothetical scenario where 500,000 cancel in protest and noted that would represent about 1% of the service’s subscriber base—“not enough” for Sony to rethink. In his view, digital remains far more profitable than disc-based sales.

Do you support an all-digital gaming future?

From Sony’s perspective, shifting new releases to digital brings in more revenue per purchase, especially as console demand is expected to weaken as hardware costs keep rising. The math also changes depending on whether the game is Sony-owned or published by another studio.

For a first-party PlayStation release such as The Last of Us, Sony would retain only about 65% of revenue from a physical disc, with around 30% going to the retailer and roughly 5% covering manufacturing expenses. For a physical disc of a third-party title—like Activision’s Call of Duty—Sony instead earns a licensing fee, described as likely around 15%.

Digital distribution flips those margins. With a first-party game sold through Sony’s own PlayStation Store, Sony keeps 100% of the sales revenue. For third-party releases such as Call of Duty, Sony keeps a 30% platform cut—roughly $21 on a $70 purchase, based on the figures cited.

Meanwhile, Sony’s shift away from discs for the future doesn’t mean every upcoming title is going disc-free immediately. Santa Monica Studio confirmed that God of War Laufey will be “available on disc,” implying its release is set for 2027. Insomniac has also confirmed that Marvel’s Wolverine will receive a disc release.

Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].