- According to PlayStation’s terms of service, players can lose all of their games if they are inactive for three years.
- The company has the right to close your account and revoke all licenses.
- Users will get 6 months to reactivate their PSN account, losing all digital purchases after this period.
Calling the last few days a PR disaster for PlayStation would be an understatement. Ever since Sony announced its decision to stop printing physical discs in 2028, fans have been criticizing the company constantly.
Players are cancelling their PS Plus subscription to express anger over this strategy, with game developers also criticizing this move from Sony. Now, fans online have discovered another anti-consumer guideline in the company’s terms of service, further worsening PlayStation’s public image.
Why it matters: Laws and bureaucratic intervention are more important than ever to protect consumer interests, as companies are signalling a bleak future for gaming.
According to PlayStation’s terms of service, if players don’t use their PSN account for three years, the company will close it and revoke all of their digital games. Article 21.2 clearly states that if an account remains inactive for 36 months, PlayStation will delete it, and the user will lose access to all products they have purchased.
The company will send an email to the player, allowing them to respond and tell PlayStation to keep the PSN account open. However, if the user fails to reply within the 6-month validity period of the email, the account will permanently close, revoking the license of every digital game, DLC, or movie you have purchased from the store.
In light of PlayStation going all-in on digital media, this condition in the terms of service isn’t a good sign for consumers. Over 85% of PlayStation players currently oppose the decision to end physical media production, and this licensing agreement proves why.
Fans have threatened to quit PlayStation due to this strategy shift from Sony, with a petition to prevent the cancellation of game discs passing 90k signatures recently. Regardless, it doesn’t feel like consumers will have much authority over their purchase if game discs are phased out.
Do you think PlayStation has become too anti-consumer? Is the company signing its own death warrant with these decisions? Tell us in the comments below or head to the Tech4Gamers forum for discussion.
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Shameer Sarfaraz has previously worked for eXputer as a Senior News Writer for several years. Now with Tech4Gamers, he loves to devoutly keep up with the latest gaming and entertainment industries. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and years of experience reporting on games. Besides his passion for breaking news stories, Shahmeer loves spending his leisure time farming away in Stardew Valley. VGC, IGN, GameSpot, Game Rant, TheGamer, GamingBolt, The Verge, NME, Metro, Dot Esports, GameByte, Kotaku Australia, PC Gamer, and more have cited his articles.
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