• Light/Dark
  • Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
  • We have made minor adjustments to how the search bar works on ResetEra. You can read about the changes here.

Sony faces Romanian antitrust probe over PlayStation dominance abuse

Idas

Idas

Antitrusting By Keyboard
Member
Mar 20, 2022
2,025
Sony is the target of an antitrust probe by the Romanian Competition Council.

They have concerns about Sony abusing its dominant position in the console gaming market through PlayStation, for example for selling online video games exclusively through the PlayStation Store and for banning competing distributors from accessing activation codes.

The second issue makes a bit more sense than the first one. But it's going to be an interesting case to follow.

It's clear that third party stores in "walled gardens" is going to be a point of contention for the majority of players (no matter the device) in the coming years.

The press release (in Romanian).

A (machine) translation:

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.
 
BeeDog

BeeDog

Member
Oct 26, 2017
4,556
Hey, if this somehow could lead to cheaper PS5 keys from third-party sites, I'm all for it. But I lean towards what you're saying, the "walled garden" fight probably won't amount to much since it would affect beasts much bigger than Sony (e.g. MS, Apple).
 
nsilvias

nsilvias

Member
Oct 25, 2017
23,775
i miss buying psn codes from third parties. the selection is so anemic now because so many codes are from bundles
 
seroun

seroun

Member
Oct 25, 2018
4,464
Good. Although I don't have much hope, but if any consumer advantage can be gained from this, let's fucking do it!
 
raketenrolf

raketenrolf

Member
Oct 28, 2017
5,211
Germany
BeeDog said:
Hey, if this somehow could lead to cheaper PS5 keys from third-party sites, I'm all for it. But I lean towards what you're saying, the "walled garden" fight probably won't amount to much since it would affect beasts much bigger than Sony (e.g. MS, Apple).
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I guess you would also need someone else fight for it. Romania is probably so small they would rather just stop selling there than commit to a change in every market.
 
Johnny Blaze

Johnny Blaze

Avenger
Oct 29, 2017
4,165
DE
BeeDog said:
Hey, if this somehow could lead to cheaper PS5 keys from third-party sites, I'm all for it. But I lean towards what you're saying, the "walled garden" fight probably won't amount to much since it would affect beasts much bigger than Sony (e.g. MS, Apple).
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
You can buy Xbox game keys already.

It's bs by Sony to not allow it.
 
12Danny123

12Danny123

Member
Jan 31, 2018
1,722
The EU needs to open a antitrust case imo. The fact that Sony has 80% of the high performance console market and use that market share to get timed exclusives at cheaper prices is ridiculous and anti-competitive.
 
BeeDog

BeeDog

Member
Oct 26, 2017
4,556
Dirt McGirt said:
You can buy Xbox game keys already.

It's bs by Sony to not allow it.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

The second part of my comment was more about having parallel stores to the PS Store/MS Store/Apple Store, which is not the case. I know about MS keys from third-party sites: I've enjoyed that boon massively for Gears and Forza Horizon!
 
Johnny Blaze

Johnny Blaze

Avenger
Oct 29, 2017
4,165
DE
BeeDog said:
The second part of my comment was more about having parallel stores to the PS Store/MS Store/Apple Store, which is not the case. I know about MS keys from third-party sites: I've enjoyed that boon massively for Gears and Forza Horizon!
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Ah that, yeah that's a fight nobody wants to have. MS would probably be ok with it especially if they get ABK.
 
Rowsdower

Rowsdower

Prophet of Truth - The Wise Ones
Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
16,571
Canada
Would be nice to see third party sellers sell PSN codes/game keys again. Bullshit they stopped that.
 
Zebesian-X

Zebesian-X

Member
Dec 3, 2018
19,732
Third party codes would be huge

I continue to wonder how far we'll get when it comes to breaking down the walled garden. Seems inevitable for phones at the very least
 
Kemono

Kemono

â–˛ Legend â–˛
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
7,669
Good luck with that.

Apple, google, epic, Nintendo, etc. would also like a word i think.

But imo more power to the consumer. Let's break open the walled gardens.
 
hydrophilic attack

hydrophilic attack

Member
Oct 25, 2017
21,460
Sweden
the lack of alternatives to the platform holders' online stores is a pretty big problem. if we ever get a full digital future, this is something that absolutely needs to be addressed, and this probe seems a good starting point
 
Nickerbocker98

Nickerbocker98

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,363
I love the fact that I can buy Switch codes from third-party sellers because it is the closest thing to digital game gifting that none of the three have that they should freaking steal from Steam.

The fact that Sony is the only one of the three that doesn't allow it is dumb.
 
Rowsdower

Rowsdower

Prophet of Truth - The Wise Ones
Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
16,571
Canada
btw this is about third party code selling, not market share/timed exclusives etc. Idas is it possible to clarify in the title?
 
modiz

modiz

Member
Oct 8, 2018
17,841
It would be great if they reverse that and allow digital games to be sold by other vendors.
No way they get to force other stores to be allowed on PS platforms though. Thats a can of worms that the other major players will be against too.
 
pswii60

pswii60

Member
Oct 27, 2017
26,673
The Milky Way
Dr.Osiris said:
Is it sony's fault that gamers prefer playstation?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I think most of PlayStation's popularity can be attributed to Sony yes.

You can spin that argument about anything that dominates the market though. "Is it Alphabet's fault that people prefer Google" and so on, that's not a defense if said corporation is then taking advantage of that leading position in ways that stifles further competition.
 
.exe

.exe

Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,231
Gavalanche said:
Yeah Sony said because barely anyone used them. Whether that's actually true or not who knows.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Perhaps they gave different statements at different times, but a Eurogamer article provides this:

"We can confirm that as of April 1, 2019, Sony Interactive Entertainment will no longer offer full games through SIE's Global Digital at Retail program. This decision was made in order to continue to align key businesses globally. To support full games and premium editions, SIE will introduce increased denominations at select retailers. DLC, add-ons, virtual currency, and season passes will still be available."
 
Zem

Zem

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,970
United Kingdom
Not sure I'd want multiple stores on the actual console itself but absolutely they should be forced to allow third party key sellers, and especially let devs sell keys themselves on their own sites.
 
Vash

Vash

Member
Oct 28, 2017
1,795
Good.
But yes, I agree that I don't see them getting third party stores on the actual console itself. I do want to see more third party sellers, this allows for more competitive pricing in the end.
 
.exe

.exe

Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,231
12Danny123 said:
Because of Sony position, they are much more likely to abuse their position, so it makes perfect sense for Sony to be subjected to stricter regulation.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

The range of action for a big entity like Sony can in some ways be more limited than that of their competitors depending on the relevant market, as actions undertaken by Sony that their competitors may perform as well can cause distorting effects purely because of the scale/size difference. This is why for example it's okay for Epic to provide loss-leading discounts, whereas if Valve would do the same, they would harm the PC digital distribution market.

Intuitively speaking, if the relevant market is (digital) console game distribution in Romania/EU, it does not look good for Sony to remove an entire avenue of purchase/sale to their own clear advantage without clear and balanced benefits to consumers and without distorting competition by retailers (who (used to) sell digital games). I don't think "increased denominations [of physical games] at select retailers" that Sony mentioned offsets the advantage gain when the preference shift from physical to digital could be seen and forecast years ago.

I think this may the mythical topic where anti-consumer can be used in a serious cadence.
 
Last edited:
Witchcraft

Witchcraft

Member
Oct 9, 2022
1,226
Fantastic news. I hope their refund practices get looked into as well because it's absurd we're in 2023 and their refund policy (yes it's not just them, all console platforms tbf) is so draconian.

12Danny123 said:
The EU needs to open a antitrust case imo. The fact that Sony has 80% of the high performance console market and use that market share to get timed exclusives at cheaper prices is ridiculous and anti-competitive.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
lmao at this though
 
Dust

Dust

C H A O S
Member
Oct 25, 2017
32,235
Good luck, but Romania alone won't change anything. It's a miniscule country/market, EU would have to launch probe.

12Danny123 said:
The EU needs to open a antitrust case imo. The fact that Sony has 80% of the high performance console market and use that market share to get timed exclusives at cheaper prices is ridiculous and anti-competitive.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
You cannot tell independent pubs/devs who they can make deals and who they cannot for a timed exclusive/exclusive console releases. Sony is getting deals because of connections, market standing and general brand interest. It's basic market.
It's not anti competitive to get better deals on games because you have much more appealing ecosystem to launch on.

Xbox (because I assume you come from their standpoint) would have to pay much more for exclusive deals because they would be cutting off the biggest and most lucrative market (PS), hence paying up extreme mark up to make up for the lost sales. You surely see the logic here? This is all simple business.
 
T0kenAussie

T0kenAussie

Member
Jan 15, 2020
5,100
BeeDog said:
Hey, if this somehow could lead to cheaper PS5 keys from third-party sites, I'm all for it. But I lean towards what you're saying, the "walled garden" fight probably won't amount to much since it would affect beasts much bigger than Sony (e.g. MS, Apple).
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
MS doesn't want the walled garden. They are behind half of the open marketplace bills around the world to force android and iOS to behave like windows does (in that they got raked over the coals in the 90s and forced to make everything work on it)
 
12Danny123

12Danny123

Member
Jan 31, 2018
1,722
Dust said:
Good luck, but Romania alone won't change anything. It's a miniscule country/market, EU would have to launch probe.


You cannot tell independent pubs/devs who they can make deals and who they cannot for a timed exclusive/exclusive console releases. Sony is getting deals because of connections, market standing and general brand interest. It's basic market.
It's not anti competitive to get better deals on games because you have much more appealing ecosystem to launch on.

Xbox (because I assume you come from their standpoint) would have to pay much more for exclusive deals because they would be cutting off the biggest and most lucrative market (PS), hence paying up extreme mark up to make up for the lost sales. You surely see the logic here? This is all simple business.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

It's different if the third party is reaching out to Sony vs Sony reaching out to third parties. I agree that you can't tell independent developers/publishers who to go to. However it's very possible to stop Sony on taking initiative on reaching out to third parties to exclude competitors.
 
ianpm31

ianpm31

Member
Oct 27, 2017
6,529
12Danny123 said:
The EU needs to open a antitrust case imo. The fact that Sony has 80% of the high performance console market and use that market share to get timed exclusives at cheaper prices is ridiculous and anti-competitive.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Lol so if you want to use that statistic then Nintendo has 100% market share and full on monopoly in the low performance category.
 
SCUMMbag

SCUMMbag

Prophet of Truth - Chicken Chaser
Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,578
Would be great to be able to buy PS keys from third parties again.
 
12Danny123

12Danny123

Member
Jan 31, 2018
1,722
ianpm31 said:
Lol so if you want to use that statistic then Nintendo has 100% market share and full on monopoly in the low performance category.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Regardless of the specific number. The CMA, EU, FTC and other regulators have said that Sony and Microsoft compete much more directly than say Nintendo. It's why you often see a lot of regulators focus only on Sony and Microsoft.
 
Kalentan

Kalentan

Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,663
I don't mind if they make Sony allow third parties to sell digital codes. But I don't want multiple storefronts on the PS5 itself.
 
ianpm31

ianpm31

Member
Oct 27, 2017
6,529
12Danny123 said:
Regardless of the specific number. The CMA, EU, FTC and other regulators have said that Sony and Microsoft compete much more directly than say Nintendo. It's why you often see a lot of regulators focus only on Sony and Microsoft.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Nintendo exists too. Ppl on here care so much about the high end category we'll make sure to direct that same energy to the low performance category which is a 100% monopoly. I'm honestly just showing the hypocrisy of some ppl bc I don't believe any of these stats. All 3 compete in the same category
 
lazerface66

lazerface66

Member
Jan 9, 2018
578
Cluj-Napoca, Romania
ianpm31 said:
Nintendo exists too. Ppl on here care so much about the high end category we'll make sure to direct that same energy to the low performance category which is a 100% monopoly. I'm honestly just showing the hypocrisy of some ppl bc I don't believe any of these stats. All 3 compete in the same category
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
But Nintendo and Microsoft don't block you from buying digital codes on amazon / from another vendor.
 
BountyHunter

BountyHunter

Member
Apr 13, 2023
842
I was trying to buy a Jedi Survivor code for PS5 for my friend on CDKeys earlier this week. I thought it was just an availability thing, that it was out of stock, rather than Sony bans these sales.

That's actually pretty wild that they protect the sale of even third party games. Surprised its taken this long for a case to come up.
 
hobblygobbly

hobblygobbly

Member
Oct 25, 2017
7,572
NORDFRIESLAND, DEUTSCHLAND
the refund process is complete garbage and sony needs to be pressured more on this to correct it. they make it a drawn out process with a lot of roadblocks which is not in line with EU consumer laws. if you havve ever dealt with their support system for refunds you know what a pain in the ass it is
 
.exe

.exe

Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,231
ianpm31 said:
Nintendo exists too. Ppl on here care so much about the high end category we'll make sure to direct that same energy to the low performance category which is a 100% monopoly. I'm honestly just showing the hypocrisy of some ppl bc I don't believe any of these stats. All 3 compete in the same category
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

For one, it isn't illegal to be dominant, and two, Sony doesn't need to capture the majority of the relevant market to be seen as a dominant entity. So, Nintendo may well be included in the equation and depending on the relevant market breakdown, I believe Sony can still be seen as dominant even if their market share is smaller than Nintendo's -- as long as it's individually still considerate.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.