Sony isn’t wasting time. After announcing that PlayStation will stop using discs, the company has already begun winding down production at its Thalgau, Austria factory, its last disc plant. The site currently makes around 600,000 discs a day, half of them for PlayStation, but by 2028 output will shrink to just 10 percent.
The Thalgau plant also serves as the headquarters for Sony’s disc division. Sony used to run disc factories in Indiana and New Jersey, but those closed years ago. The Indiana site now works with automakers on packaging and headlight assembly.
Sony is retraining its 300 workers at Thalgau to move into optical microlenses, which are used in headsets and car lighting. The company has already put in €30 million for microlens production, with mass production expected to start next year.
Also Read: PlayStation to remove physical discs by 2028
By 2028, Sony’s last disc factory will be fully repurposed, marking the end of the disc era as PlayStation goes all-in on digital releases.
Moving forward, the PlayStation 6 is expected to ship without a disc drive.
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