A new lawsuit has popped up against PlayStation. The PlayStation lawsuit appears to be centered on the monopoly Sony holds over its digital storefront. It would seem that if this lawsuit proceeds against Sony, we could see Sony open the market for the sale of digital PlayStation content to other providers. That would be big news and likely quite welcomed by consumers.
Thanks to MP1ST, we’re learning about a new lawsuit that was filed in the Netherlands. Headed by the Mass Damage & Consumer Foundation, the lawsuit gained traction in February of this year when a campaign was launched, attracting over 20,000 participants. Overall, the focus was on how consumers feel that Sony is pushing digital-only consoles, especially with the latest generation.
As a result of this practice, players are now compelled to purchase digital content, which is reportedly 47% more expensive for the digital version of the game than for the physical disc alternative. Furthermore, this is accompanied by claims that the distribution of digital games costs Sony significantly less than a physical release.
The lawsuit is dubbing the move the “Sony tax,” as digital purchases from the storefront are restricted to the official PlayStation Store. That storefront is also dictated by Sony in terms of pricing, limiting access to developers and publishers as to what the price would be set at for consumers. Likewise, the lawsuit also notes that PlayStation dominates their marketplace by about 80%, giving Sony the freedom not to worry about what competitors, developers, or consumers are doing.
This push is to see Sony open the market for the sale of digital PlayStation content to other providers. The first hearing on this matter is expected to take place later this year, so we’ll have to monitor its progress and see how it fares in court. Again, this is just a class action lawsuit that is currently being initiated, with the first hearing yet to be scheduled. Of course, this does remind us of a somewhat similar lawsuit that happened between Epic and Apple.
