PlayStation Lawsuit: Sony Says 'Reasonable Consumers' Know They Don't Own Digital Games

The dispute over digital game ownership on PlayStation is entering its next phase. Four plaintiffs in California accuse Sony of creating the impression through PlayStation Store buttons like “Buy Now” and “Confirm Purchase” that users truly own a game – when in reality, only a revocable license is sold.

What is the lawsuit against Sony's PS Store about?

The lawsuit is based on California's Digital Goods Act AB 2426, which comes into effect in January 2025. It obliges providers to clearly disclose when customers merely acquire a revocable license for a “digital good” – which, according to the law, expressly includes video games. Furthermore, the law prohibits phrases like “kaufen” (buy) or “Purchase” when in fact only a license is granted.

How does Sony justify its defense against the lawsuit?

In their motion, Sony's lawyers counter that “vernünftige Konsumenten” (in the original: “reasonable consumers”) would not be misled anyway, because they already know they are only acquiring a license. The company further argues that digital copies are not a finite resource – since theoretically any number of people can “buy” the same digital copy of a game, no one can truly “own” it in the proper sense. The next hearing before Judge Chhabria is scheduled for October 1; whether the case will even proceed to trial remains to be seen.

From our perspective, this is a rather bold claim by Sony: assuming that customers know the subtle legal distinctions between purchase and license merely because they are theoretically stated somewhere in the terms and conditions is a generous assumption. The case thus joins a larger industry debate – similar criticism has been raised against other digital storefronts in the past, highlighting how unclear ownership rights truly are for many players. For you as customers, nothing changes for now – but if the court does not side with Sony, it could have long-term implications for how “Buy” buttons in the PS Store and comparable stores will need to be labeled in the future.

Source: Eurogamer, Push Square

Did you know that you actually only license, rather than own, your digital PS Store games? Tell us your opinion in the comments!