The consumer advocacy group Stop Killing Games has officially joined a lawsuit filed by the Dutch organization Stichting Massaschade & Consument (SM&C) against Sony. The legal challenge targets Sony's ongoing shift towards digital-only game sales, with concerns that this move will eliminate the secondhand market and grant Sony complete control over game pricing and access on its platforms.
Stop Killing Games announced its support for the SM&C lawsuit via a YouTube video, explaining that the lawsuit argues that Sony's cessation of physical disc sales, projected to occur in 2028, will leave consumers with no alternative to the PlayStation Store. This would enable Sony to unilaterally dictate game prices and potentially control how long users are permitted to access their purchased titles. The group emphasizes that this move would remove any competition and prevent consumers from utilizing alternative sales channels like the secondhand market.
According to the lawsuit's proponents, digital PlayStation games are often priced higher than their physical counterparts. As an example, Spider-Man 2 is cited as costing £69.99 digitally, compared to £37.77 on Amazon and even lower prices on secondhand markets. Without physical copies, this discrepancy could become the norm, as Sony would hold a monopoly on digital sales.
Stop Killing Games' involvement aims to bolster SM&C's case by demonstrating global support from gamers. The organization stated that its backing, along with that of any Dutch gamer who signs on, will help prove to the court that the lawsuit genuinely represents the interests of consumers.
Preservation site DoesItPlay also echoed these concerns, with its owner Clemens Istel noting that reduced options are detrimental to consumers. Istel specifically highlighted the risk of digital purchases being removed or altered at the discretion of the platform holder, a scenario that becomes more probable in a digital-only ecosystem.