Starting in early 2028, PlayStation will stop selling games in Blu-Ray format and move to all-digital. A decision that does not please all players, especially when they realize that they do not actually own the game they buy in this dematerialized format.
A simple right of use
This transaction in fact only entitles the buyer to a “right of use,” and Sony has even recently kindly reminded users of this. However, this state of affairs is not clear enough for some, and four customers of the brand filed a complaint last June against Sony in the United States, explaining that the brand’s communication on the subject is too ambiguous at the time of validating the purchase.
Deceptive buttons in the face of California law
The plaintiffs argue that, in general, a purchase means acquiring ownership, and that in the case of digital video games, it is not clearly stated that they are only obtaining a license to use, revocable at any time. The “buy” and “confirm purchase” buttons are therefore misleading.
Sony would thus be at odds with a California law that prohibits companies from selling digital items with statements such as “buy,” “acquire,” or any other term that a reasonable person would understand as conferring an unrestricted ownership right in the digital good.
Sony’s defense against the fine print
Sony must therefore prove that, at the time of purchase, the customer is fully aware that they will not own what they are paying for. According to documents viewed by Gamefile, Sony argues that reasonable customers know they do not own a game when they buy it in digital format. The PlayStation User License Agreement explicitly states that “the software is licensed to you, not sold” and that “virtual content is licensed and does not belong to you.”
If Sony does indeed provide links to its terms and conditions and agreements before a transaction is completed, these documents remain long, complex, and written in very small print. It is now up to Sony to prove that this information is clearly stated at the time of purchase.