Sony Sued Over Restrictions on Purchasing Digital Games Outside PS Store
Sony Interactive Entertainment has been accused of organizing a monopoly on selling digital versions of games for the PlayStation family of consoles. A class-action lawsuit filed this week in a California court alleges that Sony’s 2019 ban on third-party game download codes violated antitrust laws and was an example of unfair competition.
In the past, Sony has allowed gamers to purchase codes to download digital copies of games for PlayStation consoles from third-party vendors such as Amazon or GameStop. However, in 2019 this practice was discontinued, and currently, digital copies of games for Sony consoles can be purchased only in the PlayStation Store. According to the authors of the lawsuit, these restrictions allowed the company to establish a monopoly on selling digital games for its consoles.
“ Sony ‘s monopoly allows it to charge non-competitive prices for PlayStation digital games that are significantly higher than physical counterparts sold in the competitive retail market and significantly higher than they would be in a competitive retail digital games market,” the lawsuit said. Statement.
Lawyers argue that popular games are sold digitally on the PS Store at an average 75% higher price than their physical counterparts. The lawsuit also notes that in some cases, the price difference can reach 175%. By the end of the fiscal year, Sony generated $ 17 billion in revenue from digital versions of games and other content for the PlayStation. According to the plaintiffs, $ 7 billion of this amount could have been obtained through overpricing and the use of their monopoly position.
Sony officials have so far refrained from commenting on the matter.
