Judge denies Sony's offer to placate PlayStation users with store credit in digital game overpricing suit

On July 18, 2025, San Francisco U.S. District Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin denied Sony’s proposal of a $7.8 million settlement in the form of store credits to 4.4 million PlayStation users. 

The lawsuit began in 2021, when Sony’s 2019 decision to halt retailers like GameStop and Best Buy from selling digital download codes for PlayStation titles was deemed to have resulted in an illegal monopoly, allowing Sony to raise prices on video games on its PlayStation storefront. Court filings indicate that the settlement would cover eligible purchases made between April 2019 and December 2023.

Judge Martinez-Olguin wasn’t convinced by Sony’s proposal. The U.S. District Judge deemed the deal “a coupon settlement” and cited that such arrangements are “generally disfavoured” in court as they provide minimal value to affected consumers and limit further legal recourse.

In light of the proposal, she demanded that Sony revise it in a way that clarifies “how the value and structure of this settlement remain defensible.” In the ruling, it was also disclosed that affected users would receive less than $2 each if the $7.8 million were to be distributed among the 4.4 million customers. Moreover, she requested citations of similar cases to justify Sony’s terms.

The lawsuit, filed as Agustin Caccuri et al v. Sony Interactive Entertainment (No. 3:21-cv-03361-AMO) in the Northern District of California, alleges that Sony breached antitrust laws by restricting retailers and allowing the company to sell digital games on the PlayStation storefront at exorbitant prices ranging anywhere from 75% to 175% higher than physical copies. 

Sony, represented by Shawn Estrada of Paul Weiss, denied any misconduct on Sony’s behalf and stated that the company agreed to settle to avoid “the further expense and distraction of continued litigation.”

But the plaintiffs’ attorneys, spearheaded by Michael Buchman of Motley Rice, spent over 13,700 hours investigating the case since 2021 and seek nearly $2.61 million in legal fees, nearly 33% of the settlement.

For now, PlayStation users who purchased games on its digital storefront between April 2019 and December 2023 will have to wait for what could be a very small smidge of compensation as the legal battle continues.