Streaming Netflix Will Soon No Longer Be An Option On A Once Popular Device

It's the end of an era for certain Netflix users, and for those of us who still have a PlayStation 3 sitting around. Sony's much-beloved video game console initially launched in 2007 and is damn near 20 years old at this point. Save for retro gamers, it's probably not a high-use device these days. However, for those still using it as a streaming device, it's about to become much less useful as Netflix will no longer be available on the PS3 next month.

Recently, various people on social media sites like Reddit and Twitter have been sharing a message that comes up when one tries to boot up Netflix on the PlayStation 3, indicating that by March 2, 2026, the streaming service will no longer function on the console. Netflix first became available on the PS3 in 2009. Now, some 17 years later, that's come to an end. Users using Netflix on the console are now greeted with the following message:

"Unfortunately, Netflix will no longer be available on this device after March 2, 2026. Visit Netflix.com/compatibledevices to see a list of supported devices."

As for why? Apps still need updates, and the fact of the matter is the user base for Netflix on the PS3 is probably very, very small these days. Still, it's easy to imagine some people still having an older console hooked up to a TV for streaming purposes. In any event, it's the end of an era. One that started even before Netflix first got into original programming with "Lilyhammer," before they were one of the most dominant forces in all of Hollywood, and back when streaming was just a way to watch TV, rather than something that threatened to upend the industry as we know it. It was, in many ways, a simpler time.

It's interesting to even consider a time when gaming consoles weren't also multimedia devices, but the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 were absolutely the generation of consoles that changed all of that. One of the major selling points of the PS3 when it launched in November 2006 was that it came with a Blu-ray player. There was even a console bundle that included a copy of director Sam Raimi's ever-divisive "Spider-Man 3" on Blu-ray at one point.

Sony ran a huge ad campaign boasting "it only does everything," suggesting that the PlayStation 3 was more than just for video games. Ironically, the Xbox 360 got access to Netflix instant streaming in November 2008, a full year before the PS3. At the time, it wasn't automatic. Smart TVs weren't really a thing yet. Netflix was virtually the only streaming service in town. Heck, Netflix still had a booming DVD-by-mail business at the time.

Netflix didn't officially end its DVD service until late 2023, which might surprise some people, but that is neither here nor there. In the years since the PS3 gained access to Netflix, streaming devices have become prevalent. Even if one's TV doesn't have them directly, Amazon Fire TV devices or Roku devices can be purchased on the cheap. Subsequent gaming consoles had Netflix ready to go, along with other streaming apps. It was no longer a novel thing, but rather an expected feature.

It is a deep signal of the passage of time that the PlayStation 3, one of the pioneers when it came to making Netflix instant streaming more accessible to the general public, is now losing the app altogether. Pour one out.