Sony sued £5 billion for “ripping off” customers

Sony

The gaming giant Sony now finds itself in a lawsuit in the UK for allegedly “ripping off” its customers. The legal claim was introduced by consumer rights campaigner Alex Neill.

According to the lawsuit filings, they are accused of breaching competition laws through their required cut of all purchases made through the PlayStation Store. This claim states that players in the UK have been “overcharged” £5 billion ($5.9 billion) for digital purchases over the past 6 years.


This collective lawsuit covers players in the UK who have made a purchase on the platform since August 19, 2016. Should it be successful, then each person would be entitled to a value between £67 and £562 damages, plus interest.

It seems the issue stems from Sony’s 30% cut they receive from purchase made from their online store. Other companies do also ask for a fee at this market value, such as Steam and Xbox. Epic Games Store takes a smaller amount at 12%. The suit doesn’t state if the issue comes from the amount or rather that it’s done at all.

“The game is up for Sony PlayStation,” Alex Neill spoke to Sky News. “With this legal action I am standing up for the millions of UK people who have been unwittingly overcharged. We believe Sony has abused its position and ripped off its customers.”

She added, “The actions of Sony is costing millions of people who can’t afford it, particularly when we’re in the midst of a cost of living crisis and the consumer purse is being squeezed like never before.”

It remains to be seen how far this lawsuit will go. Sony has also yet to speak on this matter. Recently the company was also accused by Microsoft for paying developers to keep their games off of Xbox Game Pass.


About

Got into gaming thanks to a nice old lady who lived across the street. Enjoy most genres of games.


Where'd our comments go? Subscribe to become a member to get commenting access and true free speech!