A recent report from Venture Beat, suggests that Sony is pulling PlayStation Now retail cards from UK retailers shelves. The PlayStation Now retail cards (gift cards), which were sold as 1, 3 or 12 months subscriptions, are used to redeem for a PS Now subscription of the chosen duration.
But the Venture Beat report states that these retail counter gift cards will no longer be sold from January 21st. After this date, the only way to buy a subscription to PS Now will be online or through the PS4 or PS5.
PlayStation Now is PlayStation’s cloud gaming service where subscribers can stream a wealth of PS3 and PS4 games. With some being downloadable to your console.
Is Sony planning to Merge PS Plus and PS Now?
It is very possible that the PS Now cards are being removed as Sony is planning to merge PlayStation Now with PlayStation Plus. A report in December by Bloomberg suggests that Sony is indeed planning to merge the two services into a service that will compete with Xbox Games Pass.
According to Bloomberg Journalist Jason Schrier, the new service is codenamed Spartacus and Sony is planning to launch it this Spring.
The new service will amalgamate PS Plus and PS Now and will allow players to access the cloud gaming service and the benefits of the PlayStation Now subscription.
Personally, I think merging the two services is a great idea. I currently subscribe to PS Now and PS Plus but I do find that I don;t use PS Now that much. The current £50.00 for a 12-month subscription is a bit steep for what’s on offer.
If the two services were merged though and you could get PS Plus and access to PS Now for say, £70.00 per year. That would be much more reasonable.
PlayStation has yet to officially comment or announce on any new online subscription service.
