Sony’s End of Physical PS5 Discs Could Undercut Its Own Antitrust Defense, Analyst Says

Sony’s plan to end physical PlayStation 5 discs by January 2028 has run into legal trouble in the Netherlands, where a consumer rights group has filed a $457 million lawsuit on behalf of roughly 1.7 million PlayStation users.

Dutch organisation Stichting Massaschade & Consument argues that removing physical games would leave consumers with fewer purchasing options and higher prices, since digital downloads are sold only through Sony’s PlayStation Store. The case follows online backlash after Sony’s original announcement, with players worried about losing the ability to resell games or buy used copies cheaply.

Speaking to Fortune, Andrew Ching, marketing chair at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, explained that Sony’s 30% commission applies only to digital sales, whereas physical retailers pay a lower manufacturing royalty that lets used games sell for less as their resale value drops. He noted that Sony has historically cited competition from physical and second-hand game sales when defending itself against antitrust claims. ‘By phasing out physical discs, Sony essentially destroys its own defense,’ Ching said.

Sony says about 85% of PlayStation sales are already digital, describing the shift as a natural response to changing habits. Ching countered that the remaining 15% is still a meaningful share of buyers, many of whom value the ability to resell games later — a $60 purchase resold for $20 effectively costs $40 to play. Games analyst Rhys Elliott of Alinea Analytics told GameSpot that eliminating resale value pushes more transactions toward full-price digital sales, an outcome he said ‘obviously suits Sony better than a thriving second-hand market.’

Ching added that the backlash isn’t purely about price but about consumers losing an option they’d come to expect, and suggested the shift could give Microsoft room to court PlayStation users by reaffirming its own commitment to physical games — even as Xbox’s own gaming division works through a restructuring involving about 3,200 job cuts.