00:00Hey, did you know that PlayStation is going to stop manufacturing disc-based games from January 2028?
00:05Heads up! We're not going to tell you that news here, so you don't make us the Internet Explorer meme.
00:10in the comments,
00:11Instead, we're going to show you what all of that means for the gaming industry.
00:15And why does half the community want to burn PlayStation at the stake?
00:19The first thing to know is that the end of physical formats in video games is not new.
00:23Almost since its founding in 2003, Steam, which accounts for between 50 and 70% of sales of
00:30computer games,
00:32sells 100% digital deliveries.
00:36Ah, but if we're talking about the console gaming segment—PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo—things change completely.
00:43head.
00:44Before 1994, the year the PlayStation 1 was released,
00:49Nintendo was the king of this market and did so by distributing video games on cartridges.
00:54When Sony arrived with its video game console, it did so with video games on CD.
00:59It was the first company to do so and set the standard that was later replicated by Xbox and Nintendo.
01:04The disc was more convenient than the cartridge, it was cheaper, and it stored more information
01:10and then it evolved to DVD and then to Blu-ray.
01:13This is how PlayStation was founded, how it became the giant it is today, and how it remained until 2013.
01:20when the sale of digital titles began to grow and has not stopped since.
01:25Look at this and you'll see what we're saying.
01:27According to Full Game Software Digital Doublo Radio,
01:32for the year of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One launch,
01:3525% of deliveries for this console business were sold digitally.
01:42And in 2025 it was 80%.
01:46Those aren't the real figures; they're counting DLCs, skins, virtual currency, and other things.
01:51If we counted all those elements, the figure would increase to 90 or 95%.
01:56But for the purposes of this video, we are only interested in digital game sales.
02:01and not digital revenue, which are two completely different things.
02:06With that in mind, it's undeniable that the video game industry migrated
02:11and it's at a point of no return with digital games.
02:14Compared to the physical format, they are easier to buy,
02:18They have almost immediate availability and do not get damaged or scratched, as would happen to a disc.
02:23However, it would be very selfish to stop thinking about that 20% who still buy physical video games.
02:29Whether it's because they are collectors, because they have a console with a disc drive, or more importantly,
02:35Because today, buying a digital video game is not the same as buying a physical video game.
02:41Having a video game on disc means being able to play it, obviously, sell it, give it away, lend it out
02:47or simply keep it on a shelf for decades.
02:50This is called the first sale doctrine, which is incorporated into US law.
02:57and in Colombia it has been under the principle of exhaustion of the right of distribution since 1993.
03:04These are the rules that make second-hand markets legal.
03:08Unilago, Unicentro, San Andresito or you, lending or selling a game to a friend.
03:14The disappearance of the physical format means leaving those who print the covers without work.
03:19to the person who manufactures the covers, to the person who distributes them, and to the person who sells them.
03:23All this is because the only option available is to buy in digital format,
03:27All buyers depend on stores that can offer these types of products.
03:32That's why there was so much fuss about the physical version of GTA VI.
03:37because it doesn't contain a disc but a download code that disappears during the call
03:41and the aforementioned first sale doctrine.
03:44Because?
03:45Because legally buying a digital video game does not mean owning the product.
03:51It is acquiring a personal, revocable, limited and non-transferable license.
03:57This is determined by law through an end-user license agreement,
04:03also in force in the United States and Colombia,
04:05which states that whoever sells a game, in this case an online store,
04:09has the right to prohibit access to the content,
04:12Whether it's because the servers shut down, the distributor went bankrupt and no longer exists
04:16or because the player's account was banned or deleted.
04:20That's why it's so dangerous to stick only with the digital format.
04:23because it would mean losing all the rights the player has every time he leaves his house,
04:29Choose a game and buy a title.
04:31As I said, this is all PlayStation's fault.
04:33Look, we're not saying that.
04:35The truth is, PlayStation's only sin was being the first to raise its hand and say
04:40I no longer manufacture games on disc.
04:42But if we're honest with each other, this isn't a matter for one company,
04:46This applies to the entire industry.
04:47Xbox was the first to encourage the consumption of digital games with its very good Game Pass service in 2017.
04:53And Nintendo has been heavily investing in Game Key Cards since last year.
04:58a hybrid format that forces the gamer to download content from the internet
05:02despite having a cartridge with part of the game.
05:05Why do the three giants motivate the digital and demotivate the physical?
05:10There are many reasons to explain this,
05:12But some of the most important reasons are
05:14to optimize profit margins,
05:16lowering production costs
05:18and to control what is sold and how people play it.
05:23So what do we do? Do we let them take away the physical format?
05:25Not exactly, but we have to accept something.
05:28Digital games are the future.
05:30And that is almost unalterable.
05:32What we do need to demand from companies and the law is transparency.
05:37This is not a technological problem, it is a legal problem.
05:41The rules in Colombia and around the world should recognize digital video games
05:46as a digital property.
05:48This would grant him the same or similar rights
05:51that physical video games have.
05:54To truly own it, to be able to sell it, inherit it, lend it
05:59Or simply preserve it for years and years?
06:02Amen!
06:03The European Court of Justice already achieved that in 2012.
06:07with enterprise software.
06:09But so far that has not been replicated.
06:11or at least try gaming.
06:14In conclusion, because this video already seems like a documentary,
06:16It is unacceptable that buying a digital game costs the same or more than a physical one.
06:23means having fewer rights than buying it on disc.
06:27The future may be digital, but it cannot be built at the cost of sacrificing powers.
06:32which for decades has meant buying a video game.
06:35If gamers must accept the gradual end of physical media,
06:40Manufacturers must also accept and guarantee that buying a digital video game
06:45constitutes the same thing technologically and legally as buying it on disc.
06:50We know there are many more aspects to this topic that we left out of this video,
06:55But we encourage you to leave them in the comments.
06:57and to stay up to date with the video game industry
07:00with a slightly broader vision than just leisure,
07:02You can visit our section at www.elespectador.com
07:06and follow us on all our social media channels.
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