We at Bleeding Fool have been banging the drum about what the loss of physical media truly means to the consumer for years. We’ve published articles detailing the censorship of digital media, with publishers altering media that you supposedly own. We’ve also sounded off on the outright loss of products that have been previously purchased as online platforms have lost the licenses to host or stream the content.
Consumers in the UK are finding out the perils of digital-only media ‘ownership’ the hard way as PlayStation has announced that they have lost the licensing agreement with Studio Canal.
Here are the short details of their announcement to the customers:
From September 1, 2026, due to our content licensing agreements, you will no longer be able to access your previously purchased content from Studio Canal, and it will be removed from your video library.
Thank you,
PlayStation Store
People who have already purchased these movies are facing the loss of luminous titles under this content license agreement, boasting such movies as Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Train to Busan, Universal Soldier, Evil Dead and many others. Meaning, people who have already purchased these movies will lose all access on September 1st.
This is yet another reminder that consumers truly don’t own the digital titles they have purchased. Whether a videogame or movie, you are only renting a license to that product until the company decides they no longer want to host it, or loses access to the license all-together.
And this is the future corporations want, with consumers buying expensive consoles or building pricey computers only so that you rent their content in perpetuity. Once physical media are completely eliminated from the equation, do not be surprised when they start partitioning content for more profit.
Grand Theft Auto VI is already paving the way. Not only is Rockstar releasing the base game for an unbelievable $80 dollars, but they are partitioning off several aspects of the game for their ‘Ultimate’ edition that costs a whopping $100 dollars. To play the full Grand Theft Auto game, consumers are forced to buy the $100 edition. And to add insult to injury, Rockstar has confirmed the launch will be digital only. For now, the physical purchases will only contain a digital code for the content. And remember, both the physical standard and Ultimate editions will be released at the same price as the digital editions.
Remember when developers said technology could make games cheaper for the consumer when they went digital?
“We hope that over time, since we don’t have to manufacture a disc, we don’t have to put it into a plastic box, we don’t have to ship it around the world… digital distribution will allow us to lower the price points to consumers.” — Jens Uwe Intat, EA (2011)
Years ago, I wrote an article about Amazon Prime releasing a censored version of It’s a Wonderful Life that erased several important aspects of the movie to make it more secular. It’s not beyond the realm of possibility that, with the current precedent being set of digital-only content, corporations will start holding original content behind a pay wall.
‘If you want to watch the problematic version of It’s a Wonderful Life, that will be another five dollars, please!’
Do not be surprised when other developers mimic Rockstar’s price gouging because they know consumers will pay. Until consumers stop acquiescing to the rapid price hikes of their entertainment and demand a true physical option, corporations will continue to hold their consumers digital media hostage until they lose access and are forced to buy it again on another platform.
Originally published here
Why Gamers Will Regret All Digital Games
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