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Labour asks Electoral Commission to investigate claims Farage broke electoral law by not disclosing gifts
Parliamentary authorities are already looking into a £5m donation to the Reform Uk leader from the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne
Thousands of acres, billions in investment: What's next for RiverPlex MegaPark?
The RiverPlex MegaPark is still years away from reaching its full potential, but the foundation is being laid for what could become one of the Gulf Coast’s largest industrial hubs, according to Ascension Economic Development Corporation President and CEO Kate MacArthur. With roughly $10 billion in announced investment already committed and thousands of acres still […]
Soul-Crushing R-Rated Comedy Will Break You If You’re Not Ready For It
A brutally honest look at the lonely reality of life on the road, this bleak drama is essential viewing for stand-up comedy fans.
Trump says he's building a White House helipad for a more powerful Marine One
Trump's confirmation of the project Monday came as construction crews had already begun work on the South Lawn
Get Ready for Pokémon GO Fest 2026: Global
We’re once again reminding you to put on sunscreen before catching massive quantities of Pokémon.
Lori Desautels Helps Transform Teaching Through Brain Science
Are you ready to transform the way you teach and connect with students? Reimagine classroom management, further empower your students and make a deeper impact through the “Wired for Connection”...
Nintendo officially announces revisions for Switch 2 and more in Europe in light of new battery regulations
Today, Nintendo officially announced plans for revisions of several of its products, led by Switch 2. Changes will begin to take place starting in the summer. Products will be updated only to support user-replaceable batteries. Outside of that, everything will be staying the same. Note that if you already have one of these products, there’s nothing that you need to...
Inside the $85 million private jet that made one of Africa’s richest billionaires the owner of the world’s fastest business jet
Months after entering service, Bombardier’s Global 8000 has arrived in Africa, with one of Nigeria’s most powerful industrialists becoming its first customer on the continent in a move that flexes both aviation ambition and billionaire financial muscle, especially for a buyer who already owns two other Bombardier jets
AI is already reshaping U.S. politics at every level
AI has emerged as one of the biggest financial forces in this year’s elections, and a magnet for deepening bipartisan resentment as concerns about data centers and job security grow. On the campaign trail, AI is also reworking the playbook for how to run for office.
Next 48 hours to be decisive for Greenwood’s future
Gian Piero Gasperini has circled Mason Greenwood’s name in red. The English winger is a top priority for raising the level of attack ahead of next season. The 2001-born player already has an agreeme...
Liverpool gifted golden chance to repeat Mohamed Salah deal
Liverpool have a golden chance to repeat the Mohamed Salah deal. Will they go for it, though?It's easy to forget that Mohamed Salah didn't arrive at Liverpool as a sure thing. The Egyptian had already...
Display Assistant app on Galaxy devices gets ready for One UI 9
Samsung has released a new update for the Good Lock's Display Assistant module. It is now ready for Android 17 and One UI 9.0.
Apple has already given consumers a reason to steer clear of iPhone 18 Pro
Our readers might just sit this one out.
Cavs have a Bronny James plan ready for LeBron's return
Cleveland could get a package deal if this goes the way they want.
NYC axes new rule on roll-down gates for businesses – after retailers already spent thousands
City lawmakers rolled back an obscure, decades-old law about storefront roll-down gates ahead of a looming enforcement deadline – but not before some retailers shelled out thousands of dollars in...
Virginia Hemp Farmers And Businesses Worry About Changes Included In Newly Passed Marijuana Market Legislation
Legislators want to “change the law that they created, to clearly favor Wall Street corporations over Virginia farmers and small businesses.” By Charlotte Rene Woods, Virginia Mercury A legal cannabis market is set to take effect in Virginia next summer under the final state budget, but Mannassas-based Barbara Biddle has already given notice to her […]
Sunday Bantering
It must be fun to be a manager and a pitching coach. Ok, we have Shane Bieber back and ready to go. Three starts in, he has a 9.00 ERA. 7 walks and 9 strikeouts in 13 innings. Batters are hitting .351/.422/.737 against him. His fastball velocity is at the 15th percentile and average exit […]
Vandalia Health's Sandene ready to meet health care challenges head-on
Vandalia Health's new president and CEO Jeff Sandene settling in.
Veteran trucker: AI made job safer but autonomous trucks aren't ready
Ingrid Brown, a trucker of 47 years, said technology like the cellphone and AI has made truck driving safer but autonomous trucks still need work.
Andoni Iraola hands €100m Liverpool star an undeserved lifeline
Andoni Iraola hasn't been Liverpool's head coach for all that long but, during his short time in charge, he's already made some changes and some promises that he needs to keep. Everyone knows that the...
France ready for ‘war’ at World Cup after winning the ‘disgrace’ of Philadelphia
“Today we showed that whoever wants to go to war against us we’re ready to go to war as well," said one France player after winning
For much of the past century, scientists believed dinosaurs were already in decline when the asteroid struck 66 million years ago — but a 2025 study published in Science found fossils in New Mexico showing they were flourishing in diverse, thriving ecosystems right up until the moment of impact
For much of the past century, many scientists believed the dinosaurs were already in decline when the asteroid struck 66 million years ago, a group past its prime that a cosmic accident merely finished off. A 2025 study published in the journal Science, built on fossils from New Mexico, argues almost the opposite. Right up […]
Entrepreneur behind Matthew's Mattress reflects on over three decades in business
Kevin Matthews launched his first Matthew’s Mattress store over three decades years ago in the Bay Area. At his peak, he developed his own mattress brand and managed a total of 12 stores. Now he’s ready to retire, he says.
Sphere Entertainment (SPHR) Stock May Be Cheap On Cash Flow Yet Pricey On Earnings
Sphere Entertainment has delivered very strong share price gains over the last three years, yet the valuation signals are pulling in different directions, with the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) intrinsic value estimate pointing to some upside while market based multiples look stretched. Sphere Entertainment has returned roughly 387.2% over three years, which puts a spotlight on whether recent gains already reflect most of the good news in the story. Expectations around demand for The Wizard of...
Millions More Galaxy Phones Join Samsung's Free Upgrade List
Samsung's One UI 9 testing lineup grew again this week. Here's every confirmed device, plus a recap of what's already landed in previous updates.
Gamers push back: 71% say they’re not ready to let physical games die as PlayStation and Xbox move toward a digital-only future”
Our community has spoken, and 71% say physical games still matter. Here's why ownership and consumer choice remain major concerns.
Are the ‘MANGOS’ Stocks Already Turning Soft?
Wall Street loves an acronym. The latest one stands for Meta, Anthropic, Nvidia and three other companies at the center of the artificial intelligence boom.
Liverpool can capitalise on £100m Tottenham mistake
Liverpool are now just a couple of weeks away from the start of their pre-season. A lot of change has already occurred at Anfield with Andoni Iraola and Victor Munoz both being brought in.This is obvi...
AI is already reshaping US politics at every level
Artificial intelligence is barging into the workplace and transforming the battlefield. Now, it’s coming to the ballot box, promising to rewrite the DNA of politics. Driven by a flood of
A's Catcher Shea Langeliers Leaves Game with Thumb Contusion
With Soderstrom already on the IL, the A's emergency catching plan is gone — and they may need to make have a backup plan in place before Saturday's game.
Macron’s Budget Finale Augurs More Political Chaos in France
The final budget showdown of Emmanuel Macron’s presidency is already gearing up to be France’s highest-stakes fiscal clash of the decade so far.
Yankees 5, Twins 2: When it rains, it snores
Post rain delay, the Twins quickly surrender the lead and never really give you hope again; you know this story already.
Local fireworks stand sees business surge amid firework crackdown in parts of the region
As we get closer to the Fourth of July, officials are sending a message about firework laws across the region. But for local fireworks stands, they're still seeing more customers getting ready to celebrate.
NBA Fans Bracing For Blockbuster Anthony Davis, Cavaliers Trade
Anthony Davis isn't a free agent but he's still commanding a ton of attention this NBA offseason. The Washington Wizards have already said they have no interest in trading Davis, especially since he's eligible for a contract extension. Nonetheless, trade rumors involving the All-Star forward just ...
Long Reads for the Long Weekend
(Welcome to the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a newsletter on the entertainment industry and business strategy. I write a weekly Streaming Ratings Report and a bi-weekly strategy column, along with occasional deep dives into other topics, like today’s article. Please subscribe.) Happy Fourth of July weekend! As has been a tradition of mine going back to the beginning of the EntStrategyGuy website, I’m sharing my favorite long reads of the last year, like I did in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2024, and 2025. Let’s dive right in! Subscribe “Different Prices for the Same Ride: How Uber and Lyft Use AI to Get More Money Out of You“ by Derek Kravitz in Consumer Reports I don’t think surveillance pricing, like the kind described in this brilliant Consumer Reports article, is long for the world—it’s toxically unpopular—but we’ll see if either party takes on this issue. If I ran a political party focused on affordability, I would focus on a few pro-consumer and pro-market policies: Banning non-compete agreements. Ending surveillance pricing Eliminating junk fees (read more here...) Ensuring “right to repair” for consumer (and military!) products Capping excessive app store fees Stopping digital/algorithmic price-fixing tools. Preventing automatic subscription price increases. And more. If you want to fight inflation, there are a lot of great ways to do it quickly. Speaking of higher prices... “Secret Documents Show Pepsi and Walmart Colluded to Raise Food Prices Across the Economy“ by Matt Stoller in BIG Again, I think a political party should focus on lowering prices for consumers. And deals like this—Walmart making a deal/forcing Pepsi to offer the lowest prices at its stores and nowhere else—hypothetically lower prices at Walmart...but raise them everywhere else. “15 DUIs, still driving: California’s failure to take repeat drunk drivers off the road“ by Robert Lewis and Lauren Hepler in CalMatters CalMatters does terrific reporting in California, something the Golden State desperately needs more of, and this article is a great example of that. “PugLips: The next insanely popular thing you’ve never heard of…” by Simon Carless in Game Discover Co I thought that this parody article (and yes, it’s a parody, but I was definitely unsure at first) was hilarious and totally nailed how much tech/business journalism feels these days. Actually, three of my favorite articles this year were on hype in the video game industry, including Georg Zoller’s “The Video Game Industries Very Dark Night”—which I linked to recently and wrote a follow-up here—and Owen Mahoney’s “Derek Zoolander, Videogame Exec”. In particular, I like Mahoney’s focus on user experience as a guide to what trends will actually grab hold of customers. “The Matrix Lies“ by Evan Shapiro in Media War & Peace Evan Shapiro’s first person account of his experience with AI was hilarious. I think LLMs capabilities have significantly grown from last summer, and yet...my editor/researcher just had an abysmal experience using an LLM to do a quite basic task (which our LLM normally does each week) and the LLM made a mistake on every single data entry...along with seven different mistakes affecting twelve of the twenty or so entries, including mistakes that are explicitly spelled out in the prompt. That’s a brutal failure rate. Again, if you use AI/LLM for data collection, you need to take a lot of extra steps to verify and check the data. “Ghosts in the Balcony: A Cross-Country Trip to 58 Theaters Fighting to Survive“ by Matthew Frank in The Ankler I thought Matthew Frank’s pitch to head across America to visit theaters sounded insane aggressive at the time—at least it felt that way to someone a decade older than him; man, to be in your twenties again, am I right?—but I knew the result would be great. And it was, a terrific feature by a great young writer. Also, I loved Matthew’s recent article on who’s getting the precious few entry level jobs in Hollywood. (Hint: nepotism.) “Disney erased FiveThirtyEight“ and “Did Las Vegas get too greedy?” by Nate Silver in Silver Bulletin I love media history and analysis, and there’s no one better to get the history of FiveThirtyEight than from Nate Silver, who wrote about his personal experience in one of my favorite pieces from this year. I also loved Nate’s breakdown of what’s causing Vegas’ woes, but I’ll offer one criticism, summarized as “Might I suggest antitrust?” Many centrists/center-right/libertarian thinkers (Nate is self-described as the latter) often don’t consider consolidation or antitrust as factors in policy issues like housing, America’s military readiness, or, in this case, Las Vegas. Even if libertarians want to debunk antitrust/consolidation concerns, I’d love to read that debunking. In this case, Vegas is incredibly consolidated (though it also has been for a long time) and I’d have loved to read Nate at least contending with this factor, since he addresses almost every other potential factor for Vegas’ decline. “Why Microsoft’s Carbon Removal Pullback Is Such a Big Deal“ by Robinson Meyer in Heatmap News I’m a big supporter of carbon removal efforts, but this nascent industry faces a lot of headwinds, including this big move most recently. I think it’s clear that solar panels and batteries should be able to get the world to its carbon footprint goals, but effective carbon renewal remains necessary to prevent the worst impacts of global warming. “AI is killing the cheap smartphone“ by David Oks LLMs and AI will impact the world in ways we’re not ready for, and already, third world countries are seeing the prices of cheap cellphones skyrocket due to the cost of chips skyrocketing. This article by David Oks is a terrific breakdown. “100 Days of Madness: Netflix, Paramount, Warner and the Future of Hollywood“ by Wade Major at Hollywood Heretic Wade Major dove deep into Hollywood/streaming’s financials in this must read piece. Not that I agree with everything in this article (read my take on Warner Bros./Paramount here) but the analysis is top notch. I think many people discount how quality thinking, regardless of the argument/conclusion, will make you a better thinker. “Erased by the UFC: Frank Shamrock, The MMA GOAT of the 20th Century“ by Nate Wilcox in The MMA Draw Newsletter Growing up playing the UFC fighting game on the Dreamcast, Frank Shamrock was my favorite MMA fighter, and this history/tribute to him was great. Other Fun Reads “The Hardest Part Of History To Tell Is How It Felt“ by Craig Fehrman at Defector “Unmasking the Sea Star Killer“ by Craig Welch at bioGraphic “What Could Save the Industry? Fin-Syn“ by Richard Rushfield in The Ankler Alex Rollins Berg in Underexposed on movie bumpers, pillow shots, Disney trash cinema, cult films, and Casablanca. David H. Montgomery in YouGov’s The Surveyor on punctuation marks, condiments, dinosaurs, and comic strips and kids media. “How Medium finally pivoted its way to profitability“ and “Why the best journalists on YouTube are all former Vox employees“ by Simon Owens in Simon Owens’s Media Newsletter “It’s Not Just You, Netflix Shows Have Gotten Slightly Shorter: Here’s What the Data Says“ by Kasey Moore at What’s on Netflix “Numlock Awards: How Diane Warren became the biggest loser in Oscar history“ by Nathaniel Rakich and “Numlock Awards: The Oscar Bait era is over. The Oscar Chum era is here.” by Walt Hickey & Michael Domanico at Numlock Awards
Google Maps may soon expand beyond restaurant suggestions to actually placing your order
Ask Maps is getting ready to expand from just recommending restaurants to actually placing orders for you.
Oba Corporation Introduces Mega Sardines to Azerbaijan Market to Address Regional Health Trends
Mega Sardines, in its distinctive upright vertical can, is already appearing on Oba shelves BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 03, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ...
Apple Already Testing iOS 27.4
Apple's software engineers recently began testing iOS 27.4, according to the MacRumors visitor logs. Apple's software engineers recently began testing iOS 27.4, according to the MacRumors visitor logs.
Taylor Swift wedding guests arrive at Madison Square Garden: Photos
Are you ready for it? Taylor Swift's star-studded wedding guest list is coming into focus. As the July 3 event slated to start around 5 p.m.
Sony Already Invested $34 Million To Repurpose Its EU PlayStation Disc Factory
Sony is converting its PlayStation disc factory into a plant for optical microlenses.
READY, FIRE, AIM: Please, No Politics on the Fourth of July
Maybe I’m not the only person confused by this approach to the July Fourth celebration?
Sony has already started repurposing its lone PlayStation disc factory, and the body of physical gaming isn't even cold
The Sony disc-making operation is already planning to retrain its 300 employees to make microlenses.
Sony’s PlayStation disc factory is already being repurposed
All 300 employees will be retrained, Sony says.
Rich Eisen belives he’s done doing play-by-play
Rich Eisen built a second career on NFL Network almost by accident, stepping into the play-by-play chair years after he’d already made his name as a host. It appears that part of his career is now over, as he told Sports Illustrated’s Jimmy Traina that he no longer expects to call games. “No, it is…
Thousands need medical attention from ‘already overwhelmed’ Venezuelan healthcare system: Aid worker
Claudia Manresa, Venezuela Regional Manager at Project HOPE joins Meet the Press NOW to discuss the urgent humanitarian situation following last week’s twin earthquakes and the strain the disaster is putting on the country's already struggling systems.
Your First AI Policy: Six Burning Issues for Every Growing Business to Consider Before You Scale
AI is already part of everyday work at growing companies. Employees use it to draft emails, summarize documents, generate marketing copy, assist with
iOS 27 Public Beta Available This Month, Here's How to Get Your iPhone Ready Now
Apple previously announced that the first iOS 27 public beta would be released in July, meaning that it should be available at some point this month. Below, we have outlined how to get ready for the iOS 27 public beta, which will likely follow the third or fourth iOS 27 developer beta. Release Date History The first public betas of iOS 16 through iOS 26 came out between July 11 and July 24.
Step Into the Modern Era in EA SPORTS College Football 27 with EA Play
It's time to take the gridiron in EA SPORTS College Football 27. Get game-day ready with an EA Play 10-hour early access trial.
ESPN expert thinks 2026 could be the Houston Texans' year
Solak believes the Houston Texans already have the league's best defense and will return nine starters on that side of the ball
Most Companies Have AI, Not an AI Foundation
The technology is already in your building: Employees use AI on personal accounts, with company data, with no security.
Bonus 236: A Term of Self-Inflicted Wounds
Within minutes of the Supreme Court handing down the birthright citizenship ruling on Tuesday and rising for its summer recess, its defenders were pointing to that decision (alongside the late-arriving mail-in ballots ruling on Monday and the tariffs ruling from February) as decisive proof that the Court really is “above politics,” and that criticisms of the justices for behaving more like politicians in robes than like judges are thus unfair. For a particularly thoughtful version of this claim, see Professor Will Baude’s opening response to the latest New York Times written roundtable about the Court with Baude, Professor Kate Shaw, and me. In that roundtable, I already offered one of the two major arguments against this thesis—that it’s an assessment of the numerator without regard to the denominator, and that a full account of the Court’s behavior throughout OT2025 suggests that the Court behaved even more politically during the current term than during even the previous (highly politicized) one. Just to take one of many data points, last term (OT2024), there were six rulings in argued cases in which all six Republican-appointed justices were in the majority and all three of the Democratic appointees were in dissent (along with a slew of such rulings on the emergency docket). This term, there were … 13. (Along with two 6-3 summary reversals and 10 rulings on the emergency docket from which the three Democratic appointees all dissented.) Today’s bonus issue addresses the flip side of that coin. In particular, below the fold, I identify four different moments in which the justices could have acted in ways to specifically defuse charges of political behavior—and opted instead to lean all the way in. As much as end-of-term narratives focus on what the Court did, and on the takeaways from individual rulings, consider today’s post an attempt to identify opportunities that the Court missed, as well. At least in the examples discussed below, by opting for the outcome that made the Court look more transparently political, the Court inflicted a series of (unnecessary) credibility wounds on itself. For those who aren’t paid subscribers, we’ll be back Monday with our regular coverage of the Court. For those who are, please read on.
A Strange Attempt To Revive The 3DO Is Already Dead
A long-defunct developer returned from the dead promising to revive the 3DO, but quickly pulled its pledge when it became apparent it didn't have the right to.
Report: Xbox Disc-to-Digital Feature in Testing, Microsoft "Likely" to Stop Disc Production Too
Both Sony and Microsoft look ready to drop disc drives from their next-gen consoles.
The US healthcare system is in crisis. A Supreme Court ruling could make things worse
The effects of the high court ruling that could lead to mass deportations will be felt across hospitals and emergency rooms, which already operate under persistent staffing shortfalls. But it's the long-term health care sector that will suffer the greatest disruptions, according to experts.
The Iran MOU is a mess. It still might work
The 14-point “Memorandum of Understanding” is among the oddest international agreements in recent memory. Short on detail, its two pages purport to grant significant up-front American concessions to Iran in exchange for opening the Strait of Hormuz, which was already open before the war President Donald Trump started in February and now hopes to end.
Imai Implodes Again, Astros Blasted by Twins 8-3
It’s never a good sign when your first mile feels like you’ve already run a full marathon. For Tatsuyi Imai, the outing was quick and ugly. Twins 8 Astros 3. Imai’s early game struggles were on full display before an announced crowd of 29,179. In the opening several minutes, Trevor Larnach […]
Apple is reportedly planning new iPad Pro and MacBook Pro releases early next year
Apple is readying several new iPad Pro tablets, and a budget-friendly MacBook Pro, reports suggest.
Reflecting on a Year as Athlon Sports' Senior Golf Writer: Lessons from Golf's Stories
One year ago today, I officially began my run as Senior Golf Writer for Athlon Sports. By the time this opportunity arrived, I had already spent nearly three decades in golf as a PGA Professional, coach, educator, business owner, nonprofit founder and writer. The biggest lesson from my first year with Athlon Sports was not about deadlines, access or the volume of stories written.
Small Businesses Prepare for Shift as Recreational Marijuana Market Takes Shape
Virginia’s legal recreational marijuana market is one year away, but for businesses already selling cannabis products, the transition is happening now.
UN panel warns AI is outpacing scientific understanding, government policy
AI is already being used to generate misinformation and other harmful content and could be exploited for fraud, cyberattacks and biological threats.
10 reasons Wimbledon still feels like sports’ greatest summer ritual
Every summer, the tennis world turns its attention to the grass courts of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London. The 2026 Championships, Wimbledon has already produced memorable moments in the first round, with established champions, emotional…
Are your kids already bored this summer? Here’s a new entertainment option.
Sky Zone of Wichita is “an indoor trampoline amusement park,” as one of its owners put it, and is having a soft opening starting July 10.
Are your kids already bored this summer? Here’s a new entertainment option.
Sky Zone of Wichita is “an indoor trampoline amusement park,” as one of its owners put it, and is having a soft opening starting July 10.
Rumor: Metroid Ravenous leaked for Nintendo Switch 2
Metroid Ravenous has apparently been leaked for Nintendo Switch 2. A listing for the game supposedly surfaced within Brazil’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security system. The page has already been removed, but not before a screenshot was taken. Here’s a snapshot of the classification: The listing doesn’t provide any specific details about the game. However, the classification indicates 2026...
Indie Selects for July 2026: Gameplay That Will Make Summer Pop
The ID@XBOX team has handpicked five Indie Selects for July that are ready to light up your night like a sky full of summer fireworks.
From Business Idea to Launch: Inside Babson’s New Online MSBC Degree · Babson Thought & Action
Professor Richard Hanna explains how Babson’s new online Master of Science in Management in Business Creation helps aspiring entrepreneurs build launch-ready businesses.
There’s already a history with both Miami and …
There’s already a history with both Miami and …
Sony will cease production of discs for new PlayStation games in 2028
New games sold for PlayStation consoles will only be available digitally and won’t be sold on discs effective January 2028, Sony has announced. The move applies to all PlayStation games released from that point on, including those made by Sony and those released by third parties. The PlayStation group calls the change “a natural direction for Sony Interactive Entertainment to adapt to consumer trends as the general preference for digital media significantly outpaces physical discs,” according to a PlayStation blog post reviewed by Game File in advance of its publication. As movies, TV and music have shifted from physical media to an age of downloads and streaming, Sony’s move could speed the demise of physical media in a gaming. The industry has offered consumers games via cartridges, cassettes, floppy discs, CDs, DVDs and Blu-Rays across a 50-year stretch. Sony has been reporting to investors in recent years that PlayStation games have been increasingly purchased as downloads, not as discs. The most recent figures show nearly four in five purchases of full games for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 were purchased digitally in the past year. Stats like that may cause today’s news to carry an air of the inevitable. But Sony’s declaration for 2028 is still likely to produce a shock, as the biggest gaming platform on the planet that uses game discs leaves them behind. Discs going away, but the fate of game boxes is unknown Sony is committing to still selling games in physical retailers even after they drop discs in 2028. Just how those games will be sold—in boxes with codes inside, as cards marked with digital redemption codes—is unclear. Digital games will also continue to be sold in the online PlayStation Store. New games released for PlayStation consoles prior to January 2028 will be unaffected by the policy change, Sony says. That means the PS5 games of 2027, be they a new Madden, a new God of War, a new Call of Duty, a new Sly Cooper (one can dream?), would still potentially be offered on disc. PlayStation 6 implications Sony’s timeline for a transition to a no-disc era will also spin up more speculation about the timing and configuration of Sony’s next-generation console, the probable PlayStation 6. “This pretty much guarantees that PS6 won’t arrive until 2028 at the earliest,” Piers Harding-Rolls, senior games research analyst at Ampere Analysis tells Game File. Harding-Rolls also concludes from today’s news that “the base version of a PS6 will not include a physical media drive,” as Sony looks to keep costs down on the device. Sony itself is saying nothing about the PS6 today: not its timing, nor how it might or might not support internal or external disc drives in order to run disc-based PS4 and PS5 games, should the console be backwards compatible. The many signs this was coming Industry support for games being released on physical media has been waning. As has consumer interest in them. PC games effectively went all-digital years ago, thanks to the popularity of playing games through Steam and other digital storefronts. The Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdowns that kept much of the global population home helped shift shopping patterns toward downloads. Sony’s own data shows PlayStation game downloads being an uncommon consumer choice a decade ago and now becoming the norm. On consoles, physical media has been in such decline that Sony and Microsoft both launched their current gen Xbox Series and PS5 consoles in 2020 with cheaper versions that lacked disc drives. In early 2024, Phil Spencer, then head of Xbox, told me that ““[w]e ship games physically and digitally, and we’re really just following what the customers are doing.” He added that the game industry had become an outlier in still supporting disc-based entertainment, even as movies and TV have bailed on discs in favor of downloads and steaming: “Gaming consoles themselves have kind of become the last consumer electronic device that has a drive. And this is a real issue, just in terms of the number of manufacturers that are actually building drives and the cost associated with those. And when you think about cogs that we’re going to go put in a console—and as you have fewer suppliers and fewer buyers—the cost of the drive does have an impact.” Last year, the Nintendo’s Switch 2, which uses cartridges rather than discs, introduced the concept of game-key cards, which are physical media that contain no game, just a prompt for a download. Even disc-based games aren’t what they once were, now frequently containing just stubs of games rather than the whole thing. The website Does It Play has tested over 3000 games and found that, for example, that the disc version of this year’s hit 007: First Light, only contained the game’s first mission, with the rest needing to be downloaded. Beyond all that, last week brought the news that Grand Theft Auto VI, likely the biggest game launch this decade, will debut for PS5 and Xbox Series without a disc-based version. Today’s big news comes to you for free. Game File is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and ensure more of my work is possible, please consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe Discs helped define PlayStation However the trends in entertainment may be going, it is still remarkable to see PlayStation ditch discs given their importance in PlayStation history: In the late 1990s, the first PlayStation’s support for games on relatively cheap CD-ROMs instead of traditional game cartridges allowed the upstart console to outmaneuver cartridge-based systems from Nintendo and Sega, as it drove down game prices down in the process. (The cheaper disc format even prompted Final Fantasy VII maker Square to taunt Nintendo in a magazine ad, saying that if the game was “available on cartridge, it’d retail for around $1200.”) PlayStation devices often doubled as machines for watching movies and TV on the latest disc-based formats. In the late 2000s, for example, Sony’s pricy PS3 gained traction as a go-to device for playing then-novel Blu-Ray discs. In 2013, Sony effectively roasted the digital game-sharing restrictions proposed by rival Microsoft for its upcoming Xbox One console by showing how games could be shared for the then-upcoming PS4. In a 21-second clip that has over 20 million views on YouTube, one PlayStation executive simply handed a game box—presumably with disc inside—to another, who said “thanks.” Sony’s possible motivations The PlayStation announcement today cites “consumer preferences” and a shift away from discs among “the broader entertainment industry,” but does not delve into the decision-making process that brought Sony to this point. Sony is not discussing the economics of this move (I asked!), but there are a number of potential factors: Abandoning discs will spare Sony the cost of manufacturing and shipping them, which analysts and industry veterans I spoke to said could account for $1 or so of a game’s retail price. For first-party games, that’s direct savings for Sony, though the amount is limited by the winnowing percentage of people who were even buying the disc-based versions. For third-party games, Sony could pass the savings on to partners or just retain the better profit margin for themselves. As the 2024 comments from Phil Spencer alluded to, leaving discs behind could mean leaving disc-drives behind, allowing Sony to produce consoles more cheaply. Switching to digital-only for games could diminish the risks of copies of new games leaking. It would also seemingly make second-hand sales of used games impossible, pushing more people to buy their own copies of games. These economic benefits for Sony could be boons for the games industry overall, Ampere analyst Piers Harding-Rolls tells Game File. Among other things, it could free publishers and retailers from having to worry about securing an inventory of game discs when trying to sell games, he noted. “If there is a way to streamline the business of games retail, I generally think it’s a good thing for the industry as it removes unnecessary costs,” Harding-Rolls said. “This will help offset pressure on margins from other directions – development and staffing costs for example.” Should the industry shift from game boxes that contain discs to smaller, cheaper game cards, Harding-Rolls said, that reduces pressure on publishers and retailers. “The advantage of everything going digital for the industry is that sales can be tracked much more easily and there is less commercial risk for publishers wanting to continue selling via retail,” he said. The shift to no discs will also likely impact game development timelines, as developers will no longer face the same urgency to have a build ready to submit to PlayStation for the production of a disc, as industry experts noted around GTA VI’s no-disc news last week. Instead, projects may gain weeks of development time, in the event delivery deadlines for platform approval move closer to release date. Preservationists’ likely worries While millions of gamers have shifted to digital, there are still people who associate game discs—and only game discs—with actual ownership of PlayStation games. That portion of the gaming community spoke up last week about wanting to buy a version of GTA VI that they could hold in their hands, could lend to a friend and could potentially pop into a well-preserved PS5 console three decades from now and still see it run. Such gamers didn’t want to worry that they’d merely purchased a digital copy that could lose access to the game if, say, the company behind the game someday turns of the servers that transmit downloadable copies. Digital copies of games are inherently less long-lasting, because consumers aren’t actually buying a game (on a disc), just buying access to the game. The fine print in online gaming shops notes this, as does a recent law that went on the books in California in 2025. That lasw requires game publishers doing business in the state to refrain from words like “sell” when offering digital copies of games, unless they explicitly tell consumers that what’s being sold isn’t the game itself but a potentially revocable license to access it. A Sony spokesperson noted to Game File that “[w]ith all digital content, including games, movies, and music, players are purchasing a personal license for non-commercial use.” Regarding the fears of PlayStation games being lost to time in an all-digital era, the rep also noted that Sony remains “committed to delivering experiences from past generations to the new platforms our players are using.” They noted that PlayStation has used emulation and remasters to keep offering its classic games to modern gamers. It’s true that many consumers have become accustomed to not having physical copies of new music albums or movies, but the relative precariousness of digital copies of games is in fact being highlighted today by…. Sony’s other big announcement: the upcoming closure of the PS3 and PS Vita online stores Sony said today that it will be closing the online marketplaces for its PlayStation 3 console and PS Vita handheld in most countries in July 2027 (sooner elsewhere: August 2026 for the PS3 store Mexico, Honduras and Nicaragua; late 2026 for PS3 in other Latin American countries and the Middle East). “We know this news may be disappointing to PS3 and PS Vita players who hold a special place in their hearts for this generation of gaming,” Sony said in its announcement, saying the move “was not an easy decision for us to make.” Sony said that PS3 and Vita marketplaces “are no longer able” to support modern commerce systems, prompting a “need” to close the shops and focus on more modern PlayStation platform stores. The news may spark some deja vu. Sony announced back in March 2021 that it planned to take the PS3, Vita and PlayStation Portable marketplaces offline that summer. The move would have caused some 2,000 digital-only games to become unavailable for new purchasers, according to a VGC analysis at the time. Fans complained loudly. By April 2021, Sony walked back the PS3 and Vita shop closures, with then PlayStation boss Jim Ryan saying “it’s clear that we made the wrong decision here.” This time around, Sony is giving a longer notice period in most regions. The closure of those stores is still likely to cut off access to new purchases of digital-only PS3 and Vita games. The current PlayStation 5 marketplace sells PS5 and PS4 games, as well as a selection of PS1 and PS2 games. It does not sell PS3 games, because games for that platform can’t run on the system (some are offered via a PlayStation Plus streaming option). Vita games also aren’t sold via PS5. Sony says digitally purchased PS3 and Vita games will be downloadable after the stores’ shutdowns “for the foreseeable future.” Sony’s move contrasts with Microsoft’s Xbox platform, which continues to sell and support games from all four Xbox console generations. But it puts it in line with Nintendo, which disabled purchases in the marketplace for its Wii console (a contemporary of the PS3) in 2019. Nintendo discontinued purchases in the online shop for its 3DS portable (a contemporary of the Vita) in 2023. The big questions about Sony’s 2028 post-disc era Will Microsoft follow suit, ending support for new disc-based games on Xbox platforms and therefore all game consoles, too? Whether Microsoft does or not, will third-parties that can no longer release games on discs for PlayStation, simply ditch the disc options across the board? Given the GTA VI no-disc experiment launching this November, will more game publishers decide to forgo disc-based offerings even in 2027? How will no-disc PS5/6 games be packaged and sold in brick-and-mortar retail stores? What becomes of game sharing in an all-digital era? Will Sony modify its current set-up, which currently allows some sharing of digital games across a pair of consoles, to allow more casual lending? (See for example, Nintendo’s year-old system of letting players lend a digital game to another player in a “family group” for up to 14 days.) Will there be a version of a PS6 with a disc drive? Or will a drive be offered as an add-on? And how will gamers who want to retain access to PS4/PS5 disc-based games react to whichever configurations Sony chooses to offer? What will the final disc-based PlayStation game be?
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Netflix and Superheroes Are Having a Rough Stretch on Streaming....
(Welcome to my weekly streaming ratings report, the single best guide to what’s popular in streaming TV and what isn’t. I’m the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a former streaming executive who now analyzes business strategy in the entertainment industry. If you were forwarded this email, please subscribe to get these insights each week.) I have a quick prediction before we start today’s article: You might see this data in future news articles. Not my specific charts or analysis, but the core trend I’ve been monitoring—Netflix is having a lackluster Q2—will become inescapable. Often, folks want to know “What does the data say?” Well, that’s what it says. I haven’t seen this analysis hit the trades really yet, but I have a feeling some other outlets are going to start making this case soon. Remember, you read it here first. You probably have read about the problems facing superhero films at the box office this weekend. Well, this week, I explore whether superheroes are dying on TV as well! And the data says: definitely maybe! We have a lot to cover in today’s Streaming Ratings Report, which covers the two weeks of 18-May and 25-May. Today, I’m just looking at TV, like Netflix’s disappointing Q2, superhero shows underwhelming, a few TV shows dropping off the charts, The Pitt finally ending its epic run on the viewership charts (and whether “view counts” change its status as one of the biggest shows of all time), all the flops, bombs and misses, and a whole lot more. Tomorrow, I’ve got a great rundown of the film side of things. Let’s dive right in! (Reminder: The streaming ratings report focuses on the U.S. market and compiles data from Nielsen’s weekly top ten viewership ranks, Luminate’s Top Ten Data, Showlabs, TV Time trend data, Samba TV household viewership, company datecdotes, Netflix hours viewed data, Google Trends, and IMDb to determine the most popular content. While most data points are current, Nielsen’s data covers the weeks of May 18th to May 31st, 2026. You can find a link to my terminology here.) Subscribe Television - Netflix’s Q2 Slump Continues Having analyzed streaming ratings for going on half a decade, I have learned to trust my gut, but I’m always relieved when I can find actual data to back it up. For example, after a string of very popular shows like Stranger Things, Bridgerton, The Lincoln Lawyer and The Night Agent came out, week after week, in January and February, my gut wondered if Netflix had enough new and returning TV shows to sustain them throughout the year. Since then, Netflix’s post-March slate of shows has not impressed me. This week seemed to feature a potential new hit, but then, like a classic Duffer Bros. TV show, there was a twist. I speak of The Boroughs, Netflix’s latest (and last) Duffer Bros. produced show. The pitch is “Stranger Things with older actors”. And it topped the Nielsen charts: With just two weeks of viewership, The Boroughs would have been a top 25 debut show last year: But here’s the twist: Netflix has already cancelled The Boroughs! What happened? Likely a few things. First, the show didn’t do as well globally as it did in the US. As What’s on Netflix showed, it lagged behind several other shows that got cancelled. Second, its completion rate was likely low; after an initial burst of interest, it quickly dropped off on the Samba TV and Luminate charts. Third, the Duffer Bros. left Netflix for Paramount, and that may have factored into Netflix’s decision here. (Though I tend to believe that if a show is doing well, Netflix would have kept greenlighting seasons.) Still, just because I can explain why Netflix may have cancelled this show doesn’t mean I’m justifying it. In particular, as I’ve noted before, Netflix is losing a lot of their bigger shows as they reach their natural ends, and they need to replace those shows. This show had the hallmarks of a big new genre show, and it’s their biggest hit of the last few months (in the US at least), but now it’s done. Netflix’s other show this week—The Four Seasons, the second season of the “hit” show from last year—definitely disappointed. Its sophomore season had about half the viewership of the first, only 12.7 million hours. It also only had a two week run on Samba TV, and its numbers were all down on Luminate too. In other words, even with two successes, the Q2 slump for Netflix looks real: I could add to the list of disappointments: Both Lord of the Files and Man on Fire had short runs on the Nielsen charts. Running Point’s sophomore season also opened to about half its viewership, similar to The Four Seasons. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder’s second season—see below—didn’t even make any of the three viewership charts I track, unlike the first season. Netflix is absolutely having a dismal second three months of 2026. If this Nielsen data is any indication, and I think it is, I think this will show up in Netflix’s engagement report, and maybe even their financial outcomes. And the rest of June doesn’t look much better. We have two hit shows coming back—Sweet Magnolias, one of their quietest big shows, and Avatar: The Last Airbender, a big hit for them in 2024—but the other big swings are limited series crime thrillers i.e. no future season potential. Like I said above, sometimes when I uncover a juicy nugget like this, other outlets end up writing very similar articles mimicking the data without credit. We’ll see if that happens this time! Share Television - The State of Superhero Shows on Streaming When I first heard the pitch for Spider-Noir—a Sony TV show on Prime Video that binge-released eight episodes first on MGM+ then on Prime Video two days later—I had my doubts. It’s a live-action Spider-Man show set in the 1930s, starring Nicholas Cage, based on a cameo of a character in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. No, seriously, that’s the pitch. That could either go terrifically well or horribly wrong. Great because, Spider-Man. He’s the biggest superhero we have. I’ve seen tracking numbers that put the new _Spider-Man: Brand New Da_y as the blockbuster of the year and initial pre-sales back that up. And yet this Spider-Noir pitch feels very esoteric. (Also, the eight-episode binge release feels very “Amazon copying Netflix” again.) So what’s the data say? And what does this say about the future of superhero shows?
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