Sony is being investigated by the antitrust regulators in Romania (Romanian Competition Council) for concerns regarding Sony abusing its dominance in the console gaming market. Romanian Competition Council has highlighted two possible dominance abuse examples inlucing PlayStation selling its game through the PlayStation store only and the organization banning rival third party websites from gettting activation codes for PlayStation games.
The antitrust regulators say that Sony may have abused its “dominant position” in the console gaming market by selling online video games compatible with PlayStation consoles exclusively on the PlayStation Store platform and by “prohibiting the sale of game activation codes video compatible with PlayStation consoles by competing distributors.”
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Due to these practices, Sony reduces the buying options for gamers, leading them to increase or inflate the prices of games. Romanian Competition Council has also highlighted the fact that majority of the Romanian gamers prefer PlayStation and approximately 1.3 million console video game users and 127 video game development studios are affected by this practice of Sony.
Read the full statement below:
The Competition Council has launched an investigation into a possible infringement of the competition rules by Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe Limited and its subsidiaries, Sony Interactive Entertainment Network Europe Limited and Sony Interactive Entertainment Direct Europe Limited – together referred to as Sony – in the video game distribution market for PlayStation consoles.
The competition authority has indications that Sony may have abused its dominant position in the video game console market both by selling online video games compatible with PlayStation consoles exclusively through the PlayStation Store platform and by prohibiting the sale of game activation codes video compatible with PlayStation consoles by competing distributors.
These practices would have reduced the purchasing options for PlayStation-compatible video games, leading to higher prices for video games for this type of console. Another effect of these practices is the discouraging of Romanian studios from developing video games compatible with PlayStation.
Sony’s PlayStation brand consoles are preferred by Romanian gamers, according to public information, in Romania there are approximately 1.3 million console video game users and 127 video game development studios that would be affected by this possible anti-competitive practice of Sony.
As part of this investigation, the Competition Council carried out inspections at Sony’s premises in Europe to gather information and evidence.
The inspections are justified by the need to obtain all the information and documents necessary to clarify the possible anti-competitive practices analyzed. Doing so does not prejudge the companies’ guilt.
The result of this investigation could lead to Sony allowig third-party retailers to sell its game in its stores, resulting in cheaper PlayStation activation keys. However, it remains to be seen if the regulators are successful in their investigation or not.
In other antitrust news, PlayStation’s competitor, Xbox has also been under the watchful eye of regulators around the globe for its $68.7 billion USD merger with Activision Blizzard King. The company just recently won over regulators in multiple countries including South Korea but is facing scrutiny by the UK’s CMA and the US.
Source: ResetEra