Bad news for gamers to possess PlayStation who also use the console to rent or buy movies and TV series. Sony Interactive Entertainment stated in an official statement on the company's blog that starting from August 31th il PlayStation Store will no longer allow the sale and rental of audiovisual content.
The decision, according to Vanessa Lee, head of the Video Business department in the home Sony, would come from the consumption habits of gamers on PlayStation, who would be more oriented towards forms of subscription service and on companion app like Netflix, Prime or Disney +, dedicated entirely to streaming movies and series.
The measure would affect not only the console PS4 e PS5 but also i mobile devices who use the services of the PlayStation Store, like any smartphone. In any case, users who have already purchased or rented on-demand content, or who will do so by August 31 of this year, will be able to continue to use them without problems. Below we report the official announcement.
At SIE (Sony Interactive Entertainment) we strive to provide the best entertainment experience for PlayStation fans, and that means evolving our offerings based on customer needs. We have seen tremendous growth from PlayStation fans using subscription-based and advertising-based entertainment streaming services on our consoles. With this change in customer behavior, we have decided to stop offering movie and TV purchases and rentals through PlayStation Store starting August 31, 2021.
When this change goes into effect, users will still be able to access the film and TV content they purchased through PlayStation Store for on-demand playback on their PS4, PS5 and mobile devices. We thank our fans for their continued support and look forward to further enhancing the entertainment experience on PlayStation.
PlayStation's decision, however, comes at a time when Sony is about to launch its anime-dedicated streaming platform worldwide after its split. Funimation bought Crunchyroll last December 2020. Just a few days ago, on the occasion of the announcement of the new PlayStation Play at Home, it was said that anyone new subscribers who will download wakanim will receive extended access to this new one streaming app entirely dedicated to Japanese animation. Wakanim should be available around 25 March. We do not know if the app in question will arrive in Italy with these times, but we will keep you updated as soon as we have news.
