Rewrite this title for a blog post. Remove any site names from it The title is: More bad news for physical video games? Sony PlayStation lays off 250 people in this very important segment

Game news More bad news for physical video games? Sony PlayStation lays off 250 people in this very important segment

It's the Mainichione of Japan's major daily newspapers, which reported the news: according to its sources, Sony will cut 250 jobs at its recordable media manufacturing center in Tagajo, in the northeast of the country. “The planned job cuts come as demand for traditional storage formats such as Blu-ray discs declines, with streaming services now the norm,” the Mainichi comments, adding that The Japanese group will also gradually cease “production of optical disc storage media – including Blu-ray discs”To sweeten the pill: Sony will offer early retirement to its former employees.

PlayStation impacted?

Before sounding the alarm and shouting about the death of physical at PlayStation (which is part of Sony, remember), one thing must be understood: according to several specialist media, The traditional storage formats mentioned by the Mainichi are not the 4K Blu-rays found in our PS5 game boxes. Obviously, the activity of these pressed discs remains unchanged! On the other hand, it is the production of blank CDs where something can be recorded (CD-R, DVD-R and BD-R) and manufactured by Sony which are impacted.

The dematerialized stronger than the physical

In short, for the defenders of the physical, more fear than harm. But, we understand those who have been had… For years, the total sale of games on PlayStation has been much more in digital form than in physical form. ! A recent graph, published by Sony on the occasion of its latest financial results, demonstrates this situation: in the 2023 fiscal year, 70% of sales of “complete” titles (without taking into account expansions) were made online rather than in stores. In 2019, before COVID, this index was 50%.