Sony Invests $34 Million to Convert 600,000-Disc Austrian Plant for Microlenses
Updated
Updated · The Verge · Jul 3
Sony Invests $34 Million to Convert 600,000-Disc Austrian Plant for Microlenses
3 articles · Updated · The Verge · Jul 3
Summary
$34 million has already been spent to turn Sony’s Thalgau, Austria, disc factory into an optical microlens plant, with production set to begin next year.
The shift follows Sony’s move to all-digital PlayStation game distribution from January 2028, ending the need for much of the plant’s current disc output.
Thalgau now makes 600,000 discs a day, about half for PlayStation games, but DADC CEO Dietmar Tanzer expects disc production to fall to 10% of current volume in 2028.
Sony plans to keep all 300 workers at the site and retrain them for microlens manufacturing, which serves camera sensors, AR/VR headsets, fiber networks and medical devices.
The conversion underscores Sony’s long-running retreat from physical media after closing its Terre Haute, Indiana, disc plant in 2022.