Sony VP Predicts Digital Distribution Will Overtake Discs

Speaking with Gamesindustry.biz, Jamie MacDonald, VP of SCE Worldwide Studios Europe, predicted that the majority of games will be digitally distributed within five years.

Following a keynote address at GDC London where MacDonald spoke of a “changing landscape of development resourcing”, the Sony Executive told Gamesindustry.biz, “In five years’ time, my belief is that the majority of content won’t be delivered on disc. That has many implications for developers and the way we organize our industry.”

The criticism of disc-delivered content from a Sony executive as they continue to ramp up the launch of their new Blu-Ray format may seem surprising, but Sony Worldwide Studios President, Phil Harrison, made a similar remark to Wired Magazine in August saying he would be “amazed if the PlayStation 4 has a physical disc drive.”

In the interview with Gamesindustry.biz, MacDonald defends the necessity of at least one more generation tied to physical discs. “Blu-ray is absolutely needed for the high definition content in the games that we’ll be producing. The network-enabled world, for the initial period, is much more about updated content, object sales, but also titles which are not these blockbuster titles.”