British lawsuit against Sony for alleged monopoly practices

[Harrison]

A ?2 billion ($2.7bn) class-action lawsuit against Sony, led by Alex Neill, began in London's Competition Appeal Tribunal in March 2026.

The suit alleges Sony misused its market dominance to overcharge 12 million UK users on digital game purchases, demanding 30% commission, and seeking compensation of ~?162 each for potential overcharging.
Key Aspects of the Case.

• Allegations: Sony restricts sales to its proprietary PlayStation Store, preventing competition and driving up prices, making digital games more expensive than physical counterparts.
• Scope: Affects anyone in the UK who bought digital games or in-game content between August 19, 2016, and February 12, 2026 (opt-out basis).
• Sony's Defense: Sony argues its "closed ecosystem" is necessary for security, and high fees subsidize the sale of gaming hardware (consoles).
• Current Status: The trial is expected to last around 10 weeks starting March 10, 2026.

The case is part of a wave of UK litigation against tech giants, similar to previous rulings against Apple over app store charges.

[Harrison]

What are your thoughts on this?

I think it's completely stupid.

Do you think they will win this lawsuit against Sony? Whilst I would gain from this as I would receive compensation if they won, I don't agree with it.

Nintendo also run their own closed online store to buy games. And I don't personally see an issue with that. If you don't like the price of a game then no one is forcing you to buy it. Consoles have always traditionally had their own exclusive online stores since they started being online. They all run sales and promotions,

Xbox have their own store and you could argue Gamepass even increases monopoly locked out status for it's subscribers,

If anyone doesn't like this closed ecosystem they can move to PC. But then some are now trying to go after Steam too, for exactly the same reasons. Stating they take too big a cut from game sales and are a monopoly, But unlike a closed console platform that really doesn't hold water. Steam is so popular and has a near monopoly because people decide to use it. But they don't need to. PC gamers can buy games from many sites or download platforms. Some argue that many other sites are just selling Steam Keys so it maintains their monopoly, but you can equally decide to buy your games directly from places like GOG, Amazon gaming, Epic or the EA App f.ex. So I couldn't see a similar action against Steam winning.