Sony’s decision to ditch discs was practically inevitable, data shows

Sony’s planned end to physical PlayStation game disc sales in 2028 appears to reflect a long-term collapse in the US disc market rather than a sudden change in strategy. New Circana data shows that consumers have increasingly moved to digital purchases for more than a decade, leaving relatively few PlayStation releases able to sell significant physical quantities.

US physical game sales peaked at 297 million units in the 12 months to June 2009 but fell to 37 million in the latest 12-month period. Physical spending declined from $11.5 billion in 2009 to $1.6 billion in the year to May, despite a 4% year-to-date increase largely attributed to Nintendo and Switch 2 sales; only seven PlayStation games exceeded 100,000 physical copies in 2026, while the leading title sold 275,000.