A fresh lawsuit filed against Sony alleges that video games sold on the PlayStation Store are 47% more expensive than their disc counterparts. Considering costs associated with manufacturing, packaging, and distribution aren’t associated with digital games, the cost discrepancy is shocking.
The lawsuit, filed in the Netherlands, accuses Sony of artificially keeping game prices high and echoes a similar multibillion-dollar lawsuit filed against Sony in the UK in 2022. Another lawsuit filed in Portugal makes many of the same claims.
Sony stopped allowing retailers to sell (and therefore discount) digital game keys in 2019 ahead of the debut of its PS5 console. Both Nintendo and Microsoft’s Xbox allow for third-party digital code sales.
Sony’s latest version of the PS5, the souped-up $700 PS5 Pro, is all-digital and customers who want to use physical games have to buy a separate disc drive for $80. Sony sold 9.5 million consoles in its most recent quarter, up 16% from the 2023 holiday season. The company, which hiked its gaming outlook for the year, said digital software sales rose about 14% year over year.
