PS3 to Stream Netflix Without Disc

July 23, 2010 By Ryan Fleming

This fall, PS3 owners will no longer need to insert a disc to stream Netflix movies.

On paper it might not sound like much of an issue, but users who have the choice of streaming Netflix directly to an Xbox 360, or streaming to the PS3 after inserting a disc will almost always lean towards the easier, disc-free option.

It is a good problem to have, whether to watch Netflix’s increasing streaming library on the PS3 or on the Xbox 360, but the necessity of using a disc on the PS3 has always seemed somewhat bizarre when the technology to do without it is obviously there, and currently in use elsewhere. According to Shacknews, beginning this fall, PS3 users will be able to throw the disc out, thanks to an expected update that will make the disc unnecessary.

There has never been an official explanation as to why the PS3 requires a disc where the Xbox 360 does not, but many have assumed that it is due to an exclusivity agreement between Netflix and Microsoft. Many DVD and Blu-ray players similarly do not require a disc to access Netflix, but the Nintendo Wii needs the disc due to smaller internal memory available.

Showing 19 comments

Jizzmeister at 5:57am 14th November 2010 I sucked off your roommates and they came in your PS3..........sorry........
jon at 1:29pm 25th September 2010 Anyone out there having trouble with the 3.50 update from Sony. It seems to incompatible with the Netflix Disk.
1. mary at 9:22am 3rd October 2010 Yep. Right after the update my disc stopped working
  1. EvT1991 at 7:11pm 3rd October 2010 i havent had a problem yet, and ive got version 3.5!
PS4 at 10:26pm 16th September 2010 I'm still waiting for disc-less Netflix for the PS3 ... the only discs that belong in my PS3 are video game discs.
Groucho at 1:10am 13th September 2010 I don't understand why you'd care if you wore out the disc. Netflix would just send another anyway. My concern is the sound my ps3 slim makes when the bd player is (for some unknown reason) spinning the disc for ungodly amounts of time. Hopefully this comes sooner rather than later. I'll be pretty pissed at netflix if they burn out my bd player.
Rman at 8:29pm 12th September 2010 In defense of those with disc problems, I take excellent care of not only my discs , but my ps3 as well, I eject and reinsert the disc at least once a day to game and watch netflix, suddenly 3 days ago it quit working. The disc does not have a single smudge, scratch, or spec of dust on it. My ps3 reads dvds and blue rays just fine, It also connects to the web fine indicating no network issues. My next turn in troubleshooting is deactivating and reactivating the disc from netflix.com . There definately is ground in what is happening to the discs. Bad discs? Maybe, but hard to say at this point in time, but definately not the system at this point.
1. My name goes here.. at 1:22pm 16th September 2010 There were old disc's that do not work properly, like with me for a while... Till I asked them to send me a new one. The new ones have a gold ring on the data side of the disc roughly a few centimeters from the center. So if you do not have that gold ring, that is most likely your problem. ; )
My name goes here.. at 8:26pm 7th September 2010 This is cool and all, but if you REALLY think about it... Getting rid of the disc means more to download on to what memory you have left(sadly for me, I have the 40GB with a gig left). And the BD for netflix made it to where they were able to put just that much more on to the disc.
1. Eric Anderson at 7:21am 10th September 2010 What a tangent off topic. To the last comment, the disc is not a recordable. It's a streaming disc. The service streams the content to memory, then it's gone. Nothing goes to hard drive, or BD, just memory. Have you ever noticed that if you rewind or fast forward it has to buffer all over again? That's because it's streaming, not downloading. Back on topic, to not have the disc, as the article says, is just an added convenience. The software will be added as a part of the main XMB. For those who damag discs (I agree they must be doinng something to cause it), that will help them too. I'm just looking forward to the convenience factor.
  1. Adam at 4:56pm 12th October 2010 I treat every disc I have with respect and I have been streaming netflix for a little under a year (disc mostly stays in the console) and it all the sudden became unreadable. The disc is not scratched and looks relatively new, but still became unreadable. Not sure why really.
Geoff at 1:59pm 1st September 2010 I have left mine in my PS3 ever since they started streaming netflix with no issues.
1. ANONYMOUS at 2:56pm 2nd September 2010 Wow... That would imply that you have never used the PS3 the way it was intended to... A la, gaming...
  1. anon at 5:04am 5th September 2010 or perhaps that all gaming was digital based
  2. PS3DUDE at 11:50am 22nd September 2010 Ever hear of downloaded content!?!?!?!? 90% of the games I play are not disc based..... Stupid.!.
anonymous at 8:20pm 26th August 2010 My discs also become nonfunctional. I think it's due to leaving the disc inside the console for extended periods of time.
volatileant at 2:29pm 22nd August 2010 Raul, my roommates and I have been using the same Netflix streaming disc for over a year which has been inserted-ejected at least once a day. My sister has used her disc for nearly as long. What are you doing to destroy these discs? Do you treat your DVD's and movies by mail the same way? If so, you should stop. Something is obviously not right. That being said, discless streaming to PS3! How wonderful!
Raul at 4:04pm 16th August 2010 Really? That would be a great idea since the BD that netflix provides for the PS3 doesn't last too long, maybe a couple months, tops. After this time passes the PS3 just wont be able to read it or something goes wrong, but you are without movies till the next disc is shipped from netlix. So up till now all one can do is stock up on spare streaming discs and pray that what you are saying comes true.
1. PS3DUDE at 11:46am 22nd September 2010 You badly do you treat your discs!? I have the same disc that I got when they first sent them out, and it is flawless and works fine! If your discs only last a couple months, you do not deserve to have a PS3. Anyways, while I am happy to hear that the disc based days are coming to an end, it is not that big of deal to me. I mean, has this country become so ******* lazy that they ***** just because they have to get off their ***? Good lord people....