Japan's FTC cracks down on Sony

The Japanese Fair Trade Commission announced today that Sony is guilty of pressuring retailers to sell PlayStation software and hardware at predetermined prices through its own distribution channels. In effect, Sony was eliminating the ability for retail outlets to compete with one another. Sony also instructed wholesalers to not sell PlayStation or PlayStation 2 products to outlets other than retail chains where it could then fix prices. The retail chains were then instructed to sell PlayStation products solely to consumers.

The Japanese FTC has instructed Sony to immediately cease these practices, and Sony has accepted the ruling, stating, "We respect the FTC's stance and will make sure that our policy of not setting resale conditions on wholesalers for PlayStation hardware and software is observed."

We'll have more on the Japanese FTC's ruling, including any possible penalties or fines, when it becomes available.

Source: Reuters