Market research firm Circana stated that the player-led PS5 shutdown boycott had no significant impact on the US market. During the event, neither the number of PS5 players nor their activity levels showed any notable changes.
The campaign, named "PlayStation Blackout," was initiated by the game preservation organization Does It Play to protest Sony's impending cessation of PlayStation physical disc production. Organizers called on dissatisfied PS5 users to turn off their consoles and stop using them for seven consecutive days at the end of last month.
Circana stated that there was "no significant change" in the number of PS5 players or their activity levels in the US during those seven days. The relevant data suggests that the actual proportion of users participating in this action in the US market may be relatively small.
Circana's statistics do not cover markets outside the US, so it is impossible to determine participation levels in other regions based on this data. Some players also believe that scheduling the boycott during a relatively quiet period for game releases, lacking major new titles, may have weakened the impact of the shutdown action on the data.
Sony responded for the first time in July this year to the controversy surrounding the discontinuation of PlayStation physical discs. During an earnings Q&A session, Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki stated that the company had noticed player reactions on social media and understood the connection between games, physical products, and players' personal memories, but would still proceed cautiously with the relevant decisions.
Sony is currently focused on how to continue attracting PlayStation players after fully transitioning to a digital ecosystem, stating that it has engaged in discussions with retailers regarding a disc-less future. The company also suggested that US retailers may still sell boxed products containing digital redemption codes in the future.