Eleven members of the US Congress are asking the Biden Administration to Investigate Sony. The reason? They claim that Sony is hurting Microsoft Xbox’s performance in Japan.
According to Axios, members from two political parties in the US claim that Sony’s business practices harm Microsoft and other US companies from succeeding in Japan. They claim that the way Sony operates could be against US-Japan agreements.
Why Does US Congress Want Sony Investigated?
“Today, we write to bring to your attention the imbalanced Japanese video game market, which we are concerned may be a result of a discriminatory trade practice that could violate the spirit of the U.S.-Japan Digital Trade Agreement,” the letter says.
“The Japanese government’s effective policy of non-prosecution when it comes to Sony appears to be a serious barrier to U.S. exports, with real impacts for Microsoft and the many U.S. game developers and publishers that sell globally but see their earnings in Japan depressed by these practices.”
The letters from Congress on the matter request that the matter be addressed with Japanese government officials. There’s been no response from Japanese officials on the matter. However, US Trade Representative Katherine Tai did say that the concerns will be looked into.
This request comes on the heels of Sony’s continued fight against Microsoft’s attempted acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Sony claims that allowing the deal to go through would hurt overall competition in gaming.
Insider Gaming has reached out to both Sony and Microsoft for comment. Should a response be received, this story will be updated.
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