PlayStation Removes Purchased Movies, Pushing Blu-ray Adoption
▼ Summary
– PlayStation is notifying customers that purchased movies from Studio Canal will be removed from their libraries on September 1, 2026, due to a licensing agreement expiration.
– The company has not apologized or offered refunds for the removed content, which affects digital purchases on the PlayStation Store.
– This issue may be specific to the United Kingdom, as the notice was posted on PlayStation U.K.’s legal page.
– A similar incident occurred in 2023 when a licensing agreement with Discovery led to hundreds of purchased TV shows being deleted from PlayStation accounts.
– The removal highlights the risk of digital media purchases, which are effectively long-term rentals that can be revoked, unlike physical copies.
Hot on the heels of reports that physical copies of Grand Theft Auto 6 will ship as little more than an expensive empty case, Sony is drawing further criticism for its approach to digital ownership. According to Kotaku, PlayStation has started informing users that certain movies they purchased through the PlayStation Store will vanish from their libraries. The reason? A licensing agreement with Studio Canal has expired. A brief notice on the PlayStation Store website states, “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.” So far, Sony has not issued an apology or offered any refunds to affected customers. The A.V. Club has contacted PlayStation for a response.
PlayStation has published a full list of the titles set for removal. The notice appeared on PlayStation U. K.’s legal page, suggesting this may be a region-specific issue for the United Kingdom. However, American users are no strangers to this treatment. Back in 2023, a similar licensing dispute with Discovery led to the deletion of hundreds of purchased TV shows from PlayStation accounts.
This serves as yet another stark reminder of the risks tied to digital media ownership. Even after paying a premium to “own” a digital copy, the reality is that the agreement with Sony or any other digital storefront amounts to nothing more than a revocable long-term rental. Unfortunately, PlayStation has reinforced this message twice in the same week. Just yesterday, Rockstar Games confirmed that physical copies of Grand Theft Auto 6 would not include a playable disc. The box may look nice on a shelf, but if the licensing deal between Rockstar and PlayStation ever falls through, customers will be left $80 poorer with nothing but a cardboard case to show for it.
(Source: The A.V. Club)
