- Sony has settled an $8 million lawsuit that makes US gamers eligible for a payout.
- If you purchased a specific digital title between 2019 and 2023, you will be compensated.
- This is one of many lawsuits Sony has fought due to players alleging it monopolised the digital market.
Like many other gaming entities, Sony has been embroiled in several lawsuits over the past few years. From the legal battle with Tencent regarding Horizon’s clone to the $5 billion lawsuit it got hit with over digital pricing, the Japanese company has definitely kept its lawyers busy.
One such lawsuit was filed by gamers in 2023, and accused Sony of monopolizing the digital game market by restricting third-party titles on the platform. Now, the gaming giant has finally settled this class action court case, and as a result, many US gamers are now eligible for a payout.
Why it matters: Considering the severity of its digital games monopoly, Sony has gotten away with a soft warning through this settlement.
A judge in the Northern District of California has approved a settlement against Sony that requires the company to pay $7.8 million to all affected US gamers. Any player who purchased specific titles mentioned in the court case between April 1, 2019, and December 31, 2023, will be eligible for a payout.
The Saveri law firm announced the settlement a few days ago and revealed that the court has approved the amount. Games that will result in payouts include WWE 2K17, No Man’s Sky, The Last of Us Remastered, Until Dawn, NBA 2K19, and the Mass Effect Trilogy, among many more.
A fairness hearing is set to take place in October, and if the settlement is approved, affected players will have the amount deposited into their PSN account. However, the payout will only be around $2 per every eligible title you purchased.
Players brought up this lawsuit in court because they felt Sony had increased the prices of downloadable games by eliminating game-specific vouchers from retailers in 2019. Hence, by removing third-party vouchers and forcing gamers to buy directly from the PSN store, the company monopolised the market.
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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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