A class-action antitrust lawsuit against PlayStation has been dismissed. The plaintiffs argued that the company should be considered a monopoly for using its dominant position to control video game prices in its online store.
On July 15, the US District Court for the Northern District of California granted Sony’s motion to toss the lawsuit filed against it last year, according to Bloomberg Law. Judge Richard Seeborg found that the plaintiffs failed to prove that the company’s actions violated antitrust law.
The class-action suit was filed by a group of players who bought digital copies of games on the PlayStation Store. They said that Sony’s decision to stop selling digital codes through third-party retailers allowed it to control prices.
According to the plaintiffs, these practices could lead to PlayStation unlawfully monopolizing the market. However, they were unable to show that it was antitrust behavior to cut off competition rather than just a business decision.
Sony is not the only game company facing an antitrust lawsuit. Last year, a group of gamers accused Valve of abusing its market position and not allowing developers to set lower prices for their games outside of Steam.