Sony Digital Audio Disc Corporation (DADC) is actively repurposing at least one of its disc manufacturing facilities in Austria as the company prepares to cease production of first-party and third-party physical PlayStation discs by January 2028. The Sony DADC facility in Thalgau, Austria, is undergoing a transformation into a micro-lens production site.
Dietmar Tanzer, CEO of Sony DADC, confirmed the changes in an interview with ORF Salzburg, as reported by The Verge. The facility employs 300 individuals, and these employees are being retrained for the new production focus. While the workforce at the Thalgau factory was informed of Sony's digital transition concurrently with the public announcement, the factory's management revealed that a 30 million euro investment, approximately 34 million dollars, had been allocated to optical microlens production prior to the July 1st announcement.
Although plans are in place for the retraining of the 300 employees at the Thalgau factory, and some have already begun participating in microlens test operations, Tanzer could not definitively state whether their positions would be secure long-term. He emphasized Sony's desire to maintain the workforce size as close to 300 as possible but stopped short of making firm promises regarding job retention after the complete wind-down of physical media production.
Markus Streibl, Sony DADC's Head of Micro Optics, indicated that the company plans to commence mass production of optical microlenses on a company-wide scale as early as 2027. This suggests that the Thalgau facility's conversion is the initial phase of a broader strategic shift across Sony DADC's manufacturing operations.