It’s not been too long since the launch of PlayStation 5, and now a PlayStation user is seeking class-action status for a new lawsuit which alleges that Sony has an illegal monopoly over digital game purchases on its platform. The lawsuit was filed Wednesday night in a California court.
Lawyers claim that Sony’s 2019 decision to stop PlayStation users to buy from third-party, leaving customers to only rely on the console’s digital store download codes, is violating antitrust and unfair competition laws.
“Sony’s monopoly allows it to charge supracompetitive prices for digital PlayStation games, which are significantly higher than their physical counterparts sold in a competitive retail market, and significantly higher than they would be in a competitive retail market for digital games,” the consumers said.
People end up paying as much as 175 per cent more for downloadable games than the same ones on disk, according to the suit.
Sony made $17 billion in revenue over the fiscal year that ended 31 March 2021, from digital PlayStation games and other content purchased on the PlayStation Network, the company said in an earning report; lawyers said $7 billion of that may be due to overcharging via the alleged monopoly on downloads from the PlayStation Store.
