Sony and Microsoft are arguing in court that they are not legally required to give customers money back after receiving refunds for U.S. tariffs that were later ruled illegal.
Sony expects to recover about $508 million in tariff refunds, with most of the money going to its PlayStation business. However, the company says consumers who bought higher-priced PlayStation 5 consoles are not entitled to a share of those funds.
The lawsuits claim the companies charged customers more because of the tariffs, then benefited again by receiving government refunds. Plaintiffs are seeking partial reimbursements for people who bought PlayStation and Xbox consoles in the U.S. after the 2025 price increases.
Sony and Microsoft deny that tariffs were the only reason prices went up. Their lawyers argue that factors such as inflation, currency changes, shipping costs, and market conditions also affected console prices.
Nintendo is making a similar legal argument in its own lawsuit, while judges have not yet ruled in any of the three cases.
One exception is handheld maker Panic, which has announced it will voluntarily refund tariff-related fees to customers.
