'Shift in Customer Behavior:' Sony to Discontinue PlayStation Store Movie and TV Purchases and Rentals

By: Dylan Lepore | @dylanslegos

Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) announced Tuesday that they are discontinuing movie and TV purchases and rentals on the PlayStation Store.

In a post on PlayStation.Blog by Vanessa Lee, SIE Head of Video Business, states, "we have decided to no longer offer movie and TV purchases and rentals through PlayStation Store as of August 31, 2021."

Lee states this is due to "tremendous growth from PlayStation fans using subscription-based and ad-based entertainment streaming services on our consoles," such as Netflix, YouTube, Disney +, and others.

According to the post, users will still have "on-demand playback on their PS4, PS5 and mobile device" to movie and TV purchases past August 31, 2021.

It appears SIE is not entirely getting rid of video, as Lee hits to a future for video access on their platform, stating, "We thank our fans for their continued support, and we look forward to further enhancing the entertainment experience on PlayStation" - and again, Lee's job title is "Head of Video Business."