- Sony is discontinuing several features for its customers
- The changes affect antenna and decoder users
- Menus and program information will be removed for affected users.
Do you receive your TV using an antenna or a decoder? If so, you make up a sizeable proportion of the viewing public, but if you have a Sony Bravia TV in your home, you could be about to miss out on a key feature of your device.
As Cord Cutters News noted, a support page on Sony’s website now warns customers that the company will be modifying its service at “the end of May 2026,” and not in a good way.
Specifically, the page explains that at that time, antenna users will get a very reduced experience. “Program information may not appear depending on the channel,” says Sony, and “only programs from recently viewed channels may be displayed.” Channel logos will not be displayed in the program guide and thumbnail images in program descriptions will also not be available.
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Unwanted changes will also occur in the TV menu. The Set Top Box menu will be removed entirely and replaced by a simplified control menu. Also, thumbnails will not appear in the TV menu.
Affected TV models include the A95L series from 2023, Bravia 9 (XR90), Bravia 8 (XR80) and Bravia 7 (XR70) from 2024, and Bravia 8 II (XR80M2) and Bravia 5 (XR50) from 2025. That could be frustrating news for loyal Sony customers: the Bravia 8 II, for example, launched last time. year and costs over $3,499 / £2,999 / AU$4,999 at launch. Losing features on such a recent (and expensive) device is not good news.
A ‘stingy’ move
Sony has not given an explicit reason for the move, but it likely has to do with the backend costs of providing details and images of the program to users. For Sony, it may not be worth it to continue delivering to antenna and set-top box customers.
But these users probably represent a sizable proportion of Sony’s base. Ars Technica cited a 2025 survey that suggested 19% of 2,200 American adults surveyed used an antenna with their TV. A second survey referenced by Ars Technica found that of 1,600 American television viewers who were between 16 and 74 years old and had access to broadband, 26% said a set-top box was their “default device for watching TV.”
Unsurprisingly, Sony customers were not thrilled to hear about the changes. On Reddit, user NewsCards said the move risked Sony gaining a reputation as “a stingy brand willing to remove established features that 19% of its customers use, just to save a few bucks.” User tuppertom chimed in, adding: “Looks like I can cross Sony off my shopping list.”
If you are in the group of affected customers, you should prepare for reduced functionality at the end of May. Either that, or you could consider switching to a different TV model, something we can help you with thanks to our roundup of the best TVs on the market.
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