PlayStation to delete a ton of TV shows users already paid for
Sony says Mythbusters and more Discovery TV shows are going away whether you bought them or not
The promise of digital media is that it can last forever, pristine and undisturbed by the forces of entropy constantly buffeting the material world. Unfortunately, a mess of online DRM and license agreements means that we mostly don’t own the digital stuff we buy, as most recently evidenced by the fact that Sony is about to delete Mythbusters, Naked and Afraid, and tons of other Discovery shows from PlayStation users’ libraries even if they already “purchased” them.
The latest pothole in the road to an all-digital future was discovered via a warning Sony recently sent out to PlayStation users who purchased TV shows made by Discovery, the reality TV network that recently merged with Warner Bros. in one of the most brutal and idiotic corporate maneuvers of our time. “Due to our content licensing arrangements with content providers, you will no longer be able to watch any of your previously purchased Discovery content and the content will be removed from your video library,” read a copy of the email that was shared with Kotaku.
“Is there a way I can save this content?” asked one panicked PlayStation user on Reddit. “I use PS4...But I have bought many seasons of shows such as Dual Survival that I do not wish to lose. I was actually under the impression since I owned it, I wouldn’t ever lose it…” Movies and TV shows first came to the PlayStation Network in 2008 via the PS3. At the time it was possible to transfer the content you bought between devices for viewing on things like the PlayStation Portable. Sony removed that option beginning with the PS4 and beyond. Now, essentially anything you buy on PSN, whether a PS5 blockbuster or, uh, Police Women of Cincinnati, is essentially just on indefinite loan until such time as the PlayStation servers die or the original copyright owner decides to pull the content.
| by Anonymous | reply 12 | December 2, 2023 3:26 PM
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I don't think they have any liability - from what I understand you're not actually buying a media, but buying something like a license to access which is not guaranteed.
| by Anonymous | reply 1 | December 2, 2023 12:48 PM
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TERMS AND CONDITIONS APPLY!
| by Anonymous | reply 2 | December 2, 2023 12:51 PM
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When else in the history of capitalism do you pay for something and then have it taken away from you?
| by Anonymous | reply 3 | December 2, 2023 12:54 PM
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[quote]When else in the history of capitalism do you pay for something and then have it taken away from you?
2. KOHL V. UNITED STATES The first U.S. Supreme Court case relating to the federal government’s eminent domain rights occurred in 1875. In this case, the government took private land to build government facilities in Cincinnati, Ohio—without providing compensation to the landowners. The court ruled against the landowners and in favor of the government, confirming their right to take the land under eminent domain rights.
| by Anonymous | reply 4 | December 2, 2023 12:57 PM
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Oh okay, R4. Did not know this.
| by Anonymous | reply 5 | December 2, 2023 12:59 PM
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R4 is wrong. The case was about whether the government had the right to exercise eminent domain. The court assumed that compensation would be required to be paid as that is explicitly listed in the constitution.
“The fifth amendment contains a provision that private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation. What is that but an implied assertion that, on making just compensation, it may be taken.”
You gotta read the whole case, and not some AI summary of it, to understand what happened.
| by Anonymous | reply 6 | December 2, 2023 1:14 PM
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Was there compensation, R6?
| by Anonymous | reply 7 | December 2, 2023 1:25 PM
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If the government seizes land I don't want to sell, I don't care if they award me "just compensation."
| by Anonymous | reply 8 | December 2, 2023 1:27 PM
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Well, you actually don’t need to read the whole case. An accurate description of its holding will do for DL.
| by Anonymous | reply 9 | December 2, 2023 1:34 PM
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Of course there was compensation.
| by Anonymous | reply 10 | December 2, 2023 1:35 PM
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Sony withdrawing shows is a far cry from the government exercising eminent domain.
I've always made sure to download copies of stuff I buy although I don't buy enough of it for storage to be a problem.
| by Anonymous | reply 11 | December 2, 2023 1:36 PM
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R9: “An accurate description of its holding will do for DL.”
I think you meant “An inaccurate description of its holding will do for DL”
| by Anonymous | reply 12 | December 2, 2023 3:26 PM
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