Sony Computer Entertainment America has settled with the FTC over charges that it produced false and misleading advertisement during the Vita’s launch campaign from late 2011 to early 2012. Sony will provide refunds to Vita customers who purchased the device before June 1, 2012 – either a $25 cash or credit refund, or a $50 voucher for select games and services. Sony will email eligible customers after the settlement is finalized.
The FTC alleges that some of Sony’s claims about the Vita were misleading, including that the Vita “would revolutionize gaming mobility” by enabling remote play and cross-platform play with the PS3, allowing players to start a game on PS3 and finish it on Vita. Sony is barred from similar advertising practices in the future.
The FTC alleges the following: “Sony claimed, for example, that PS Vita users could pause any PS3 game at any time and continue to play the game on their PS Vita from where they left off. This feature, however, was only available for a few PS3 games, and the pause-and-save capability described in the ads varied significantly from game to game…. Sony’s PS Vita ads falsely implied that consumers who owned the 3G version of the device (which cost an extra $50 plus monthly fees) could engage in live, multi-player gaming through a 3G network. In fact, consumers could not engage in live, multiplayer gaming…. In reality, most PS3 games were not remote playable on the PS Vita.”
