Russian users filed a lawsuit against the European division of Sony

Russian users filed a lawsuit against the European division of Sony.

Users of the Sony PlayStation system from the Russian Federation, in a class action lawsuit, challenge the legality of the defendants' decision to impose restrictions on the use of set-top boxes and provide access to the digital distribution service. The defendants are the European division of Sony and the company's office in Moscow.

A total of 28 people filed a lawsuit, they ask the court to oblige the defendant to ensure the ability to use the PlayStation Store and purchase software. This is an intangible claim, there is also a material one - compensation for moral damage in the total amount of 280 million rubles, that is, 10 million for each plaintiff. The lawsuit will be considered by the Khoroshevsky District Court of the capital.

The lawsuit was based on the actions of Sony, which, against the backdrop of a difficult foreign policy situation, among many foreign companies, announced the suspension of its activities in Russia. Digital releases have been postponed, deals on distribution of content on television have been frozen.

Also, deliveries of products to the Russian Federation were stopped and the PS Store in Russia stopped working. This decision directly affected the owners of PlayStation consoles, Russian users were limited access to new products (since there are no supplies), in addition, now in Russia it is impossible to buy digital versions of games, update existing ones. The only game "asset" is now only a personal library, consisting of already purchased goods.

Representatives of the plaintiffs argue that such a unilateral refusal to fulfill their obligations on the basis of the situation in foreign policy does not comply with the company's own rules and conditions for using programs. The Russian law on the protection of consumer rights also does not give the seller such rights. The plaintiffs explain the rather large amount of moral damage by the high cost of the goods - the set-top box cost each 119,000 rubles and the high income of Sony itself. As a result, the product does not justify the expectations and the funds invested in it.

Other online game companies have introduced similar restrictions for users from the Russian Federation, despite the fact that the Russian gaming market in terms of volume in 2021 reached about $175 billion. The court will have to decide whether to give preference to consumer protection law or the consumer agreement with Sony, to which buyers joined when buying a set-top box (it relieves the seller of liability in the event of force majeure). Also, the plaintiffs may have problems with the execution of the court decision if the claim is satisfied.

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