Sony Reminds PS5 Owners Their Digital Games Are Licensed, Not Sold

What’s the old adage about once you dislike someone you pretty much despise everything they do?

I think, for a vocal contingent on social media, Sony has found itself in that kind of trap lately.

And as protesters begin their big PS5 blackout this week, it’s taking even more heat for blasting out its terms and conditions via email – which include a clause reminding you that your games are licensed, not sold.

This kind of legal language is standard for all digital storefronts by the way, but considering PlayStation is the only console maker to announce plans to cease manufacturing physical media, it’s attracting intense criticism online.

The clause reads:

“The Software is licensed to you, not sold. You are granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, and personal license to play or use the Software for your private, non-commercial use on the system or device it was intended for.”

The document goes on to explain that you’re not allowed to copy, hack, sublicense, or emulate the games.

“Violating any of the above conditions will immediately void your license,” the terms and conditions add.

I read through similar legal documents from Steam, Xbox, and Nintendo and found broadly the same language in all of their terms and conditions.

Here’s what Valve says on the matter:

“The Content and Services are licensed, not sold. Your license confers no title or ownership in the Content and Services. To make use of the Content and Services, you must have a Steam Account and you may be required to be running the Steam client and maintaining a connection to the Internet.”

Here’s Microsoft’s version:

“All Digital Goods are licensed, not sold. Your right to access or use any Digital Good is subject to your compliance with: (a) all license terms, license limitations, codes of conduct, and payment terms in the Terms; (b) your payment in full for the applicable Digital Good; (c) these Rules, and; (d) any additional terms provided when you acquire your license.”

And this is Nintendo’s take, which I think is the most aggressive of them all:

“Subject to the terms of this Agreement, Nintendo grants you a non-exclusive, revocable license to use the Software solely on the Console for your personal, non-commercial use. For clarity, the Software is licensed, not sold, to you, and you may not make use of the Software except as expressly authorized by this Agreement.”

It’s worth noting that physical media also includes similar disclaimers around licensed content, although that format can obviously be traded or resold.

The bottom line is there’s nothing really new or exclusive to Sony in these terms and conditions.

Of course, broader questions around digital ownership in general are pertinent, and it’s probably going to require government intervention before some of this gets refined.