Katarzyna Petru
The Dutch consumer organisation Stichting Massaschade & Consument has filed a serious class action lawsuit against Sony. According to their data, games purchased digitally in the PlayStation Store are on average 47% more expensive than their disc counterparts. The reason? The closed PS5 ecosystem and lack of competition.
Digital monopoly and prices without brakes
Since the launch of the PS5 Digital, more and more gamers are being forced to purchase games only through Sony's digital store. The problem is that they have no choice – they cannot take advantage of cheaper offers from shops selling boxed versions. What was once an option is now becoming a necessity.
The consumer organisation states clearly: “Sony has become a monopolist”. And although digital distribution should be cheaper – as the costs of physical production and logistics are eliminated – in practice, it is exactly the opposite.
€435 million more. And that's just in the Netherlands
According to the lawsuit, players in the Netherlands have paid as much as €435 million more since 2013 than if they had purchased the same games in physical versions. From each digital sale, Sony takes 30% – which is twice as much as for games on discs.
– “Players have been building their collections for years, investing time and money. Now they feel cheated,” says Lucia Melcherts, chair of Stichting Massaschade & Consument. – “Sony unilaterally sets the rules and raises prices, offering nothing in return.”
Time to open the PlayStation Store?
The organisation demands two things:
– the restoration of real competition,
– the inclusion of alternative game stores into the PlayStation ecosystem.
So far, there is no indication that Sony will yield – but the first hearing in court is set to begin later this year.
