- Sony is under fire for rumored new ’30-day license verification’ for digital purchases on PS5 and PS4 consoles
- The DRM feature was spotted by several users and appears to affect only purchases made after the March system update.
- Sony has yet to explain whether the feature is intentional or a bug.
Sony has come under fire in recent months for major price increases on PlayStation 5 and PS Portal hardware amid the ongoing memory crisis and broader economic struggles. Unfortunately, the company is back in the spotlight, for all the wrong reasons and possibly the worst ones yet.
As reported by VideoCardz, several PlayStation users spotted a new ’30-day license verification’ on digitally purchased games on PS5 and PS4. This supposedly revokes game licenses if users don’t log in or connect their console to the Internet within 30 days, meaning they will no longer be playable until the console is connected to the Internet again.
This apparently only applies to games that were purchased after the last March system update and will reportedly not affect previous purchases.
Article continues below.
Unsurprisingly, the situation has left several users in a panic, labeling the move as a new form of console digital rights management, or DRM.
Update: A user requested Ps support and confirmed that the DRM issue is intentional and not a bug. pic.twitter.com/n6Xpd6LYh5April 27, 2026
It also drew comparisons to Microsoft’s Xbox One controversy in 2013, when it revealed a DRM feature that required users to be online every 24 hours or games would stop working, along with frustrating restrictions on reselling games.
In particular, Sony mocked Microsoft with a short video about game sharing on PS4, but now, in 2026, Sony is apparently doing the same thing. That is, of course, if this new license check is intentional.
Concerned users have already contacted PlayStation chat support, and based on the responses, it appears that this new DRM measure is indeed intentional, despite suggestions that it may be a bug. We reached out to Sony for a statement but have yet to hear back.
If this is a fully intended feature, it will certainly put Sony in consumers’ bad books. Microsoft was forced to backtrack on its initial DRM feature thanks to a strong backlash, and it won’t be a surprise to see the same pressure put on its rival this time around.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to receive news, reviews and opinions from our experts in your feeds.
