I’ve said it before, and I’ll repeat it. The most fun game you will ever play is hanging out in the court system. Or at least that’s what all the top gaming companies will have us believe because it seems like that is where they choose to spend most of their time.
Today we aren’t talking about Nintendo taking someone’s wages, and we aren’t talking about Microsoft begging the world to let them own Call of Duty. No, today we’re talking about Sony and EA’s FIFA series.
For those of you who may not already know, EA’s FIFA series has been the target of many investigations and government hearings over the past few years. You can think of them as the OG Microsoft/Activision Blizzard.
This litigation is because countries are raising their concerns that FIFA’s Ultimate Team mode is gambling with makeup on. While this issue is still being fought, some countries, such as Belgium and Austria, have ruled that FIFA’s Ultimate Team card packs are, in fact, an illegal form of gambling.
The reasoning behind this ruling is that players pay to open virtual packs of cards, and the contents of these packs are random and unknown to the opener. This level of paying for the unknown is concertinaed gambling by many governments and will surely be seen the same way by many more over the coming months.
Earlier this year, when Austria made their ruling, not much was known about it. A report from a popular German site Gamesmarkt shows that Sony has decided not to appeal the decision. This means that Sony has to refund the Austrian plaintiff €336.26 or around R7,062.
While this may seem like small change, it is only the first payment to Padronus, the law firm representing the case. The company stated they have several hundred more clients lined up, and there is now a legal precedent for them to be refunded as well.
In case you are wondering, the reason why Sony, and not Electronic Arts are liable for these costs, is because the illegal gambling, in this particular case, was conducted through the PlayStation Store, making Sony directly liable.
What do you think about all this? Let us know in the comments.