Sony axing PlayStation Vue
October 30, 2019
By Nik Roseveare
Sony has confirmed that it is shutting down PlayStation Vue – its OTT TV service in the US – on January 30th 2020.
In a blog post, the company cited the competitiveness in the pay-TV industry and a desire to focus on gaming as the reasoning behind its decision.
The live streaming service launched in March 2015 – offering channels such as CBS, ABC, Fox, NBC Universal – and has failed to maintain healthy subscription numbers. At its peak the service boasted around 745,000 users. The number is now believed to be under 500,000. Current subscription costs start at $50 a month.
PlayStation users will still be able to stream content on their consoles via the likes of Netflix and Hulu once the Vue service pulls down its shutters.
The blog post reads: “Today we are announcing that we will shut down the PlayStation Vue service on January 30, 2020. Unfortunately, the highly competitive Pay TV industry, with expensive content and network deals, has been slower to change than we expected. Because of this, we have decided to remain focused on our core gaming business.
PlayStation fans can continue to access movie and TV content through the PlayStation Store on PS4 and via our partnerships with top entertainment apps. With 100 million PlayStation 4s in the market today, our community continues to grow and thrive. We will continue to deliver the best entertainment experiences across the network, along with other key gaming services, including PlayStation Now and PlayStation Plus.
We are very proud of what PlayStation Vue was able to accomplish. We had ambitious goals for how our service could change how people watch TV, showcasing PlayStation’s ability to innovate in a brand-new category within the Pay TV industry. We want to thank all of our customers, some of whom have been with us since PlayStation Vue’s launch in 2015.
We appreciate your continued support as we move through this transitional period and look toward the future.”