Netflix, PlayStation Partnership Seemingly Confirmed In Recently Datamined Images

It was reported a few days ago that Netflix is planning to disrupt the video games industry and it appears that its entry into the world of video games will come with a little help from Japanese gaming giant Sony, if the latest datamined images are anything to go by.

Netflix is reportedly preparing to launch its own Xbox Game Pass-like service called Shark and could get help from Microsoft's rival, Sony. It looks like Netflix does not only intend to stream video games, movies and shows but has a more advanced plan than anyone has realized. Reliable dataminer Steve Moser recently shared a number of images he found on the iOS app of Netflix, which may support rumors that the company is joining the videogames industry.

This includes a logo for "Shark" and another for "N Games". Moreover, the dataminer discovered several images seemingly connected to PlayStation such as images of PS5 DualSense controllers and the artwork of "Ghost of Tsushima." There are a lot of reasons why images related to PlayStation are on the platform's iOS app, including the possibility that they are just placeholders.

However, Moser seemingly teased fans by asking, "Could an image of PS5 controllers and Sony’s Ghost of Tsushima (director’s cut coming Aug. 20th) indicate a partnership with $SONY?" Some industry watchers speculated that those datamined images could be indicators that Netflix and Sony have forged some kind of a deal. Perhaps Sony allowing Netflix to stream some of its first-party games.

Sony would prefer that its audience use its very own PlayStation Now feature for this kind of service. However, it is likely that if there is some kind of a deal with Netflix, the Japanese gaming giant is eyeing to increase the reach of its games to audiences who do not own a PlayStation gaming system. Meanwhile, a recent report from Bloomberg revealed that Netflix has plans to jump into the video games bandwagon in 2022.

It also mentioned that the video streaming platform already hired former EA and Facebook executives to help it with its first dip into the world of gaming. The report mentioned that according to a person familiar with the setup, "The games will appear alongside current fare as a new programming genre -- similar to what Netflix did with documentaries or stand-up specials." it added, "The company doesn’t currently plan to charge extra for the content."

Unfortunately, there has been no official confirmation about any of these from Netflix. The video streaming giant has also not said anything about its rumored partnership with Sony.