Sony’s new patent imagines a PlayStation controller that can receive payment or account information from a nearby phone, card or gift card. The Sony PlayStation controller payment patent is only a filing for now, but it could turn the DualSense into an NFC middleman for the console.
The application, titled “Video Game Controller-Driven Information Transfer”, was filed in March 2025 and published on 17 September 2026. The USPTO publication describes the controller as a bridge for information from a nearby device. IGN reports that the filing could let players tap a phone or card against a controller so the information is passed to the console.
Sony PlayStation controller payment patent: how the tap could work
The controller would detect a nearby device using NFC, Bluetooth or physical contact, then relay the information to the console. The patent discusses credit accounts, bank accounts, gift cards, digital wallets and crypto wallets, along with purchases such as games, gaming credits and in-app content.
That would remove the least entertaining part of buying a game: entering a long card number with an analogue stick and an on-screen keyboard. The filing also suggests vibration, lights or audio could confirm that the controller has detected the device and completed the transfer.
GameRiv’s report notes that the same system could handle account information. GamesRadar’s coverage says one example shows a phone being used to sign a player into a console for local multiplayer.
Is Sony adding tap payments to PS5 or PS6?
Sony has not announced this feature for the PS5, PS6 or any existing controller. GamesRadar notes that the current DualSense does not have NFC, so adding the hardware could require a revised controller rather than a software update.
The account-transfer idea would also need clear permission checks. A phone-to-controller tap is convenient, but a console should not treat every nearby device as an invitation to open someone’s account.
For now, the filing is best read as a possible shortcut for payments and sign-ins, not a product announcement. PlayStation owners still need to use the existing checkout process, including in the UAE where the store is moving towards local currency displays. Sony’s digital-games ownership position is a separate issue, but the broader shift towards managing more of the purchase experience digitally is already familiar. The PlayStation Store’s move towards local currency is another part of that shift.
Would this work with the current PS5 DualSense?
There is no confirmation. GamesRadar reports that the current DualSense lacks NFC, so a revised controller may be required.
Could the patent transfer a PlayStation account?
The filing describes transferring account information, which could make signing in on another console easier, but Sony has not explained the security flow.
When can PlayStation owners use tap-to-pay?
There is no release date. A patent application does not confirm that Sony will build or ship the feature.
