Sony Interactive Entertainment just announced that some changes have been made to the warranties of PlayStation 4, PlayStation VR, PS Vita, and PS3 consoles in the United States and Canada.
- Our previous warranties stated that the warranty does not apply if the product is used with a peripheral that is not supplied or licensed by SIE. Our updated warranties state that the warranty does not apply “to damage caused by” use of the product with an unlicensed peripheral.
- Our previous warranties stated that the warranty does not apply if the warranty seal on the product has been altered or removed. Our updated warranty states that the warranty does not apply “to damage caused by” opening the product or to damage caused by service performed by someone other than a representative of SIE or an SIE-authorized service provider.
On top of these, Sony also added clauses promising “free return shipping for in-warranty consoles in the U.S. and Canada, and free return shipping for repaired (or factory-recertified) consoles to the customer.” While they mention that those were long-standing practices already employed by the manufacturer, now they are explicitly included in the warranty’s wording.
These new terms effectively replace the printed warranties you have, so Sony will provide service even if your warranty seal sticker has been removed as long as the damage wasn’t caused by the act of opening the console itself.
This comes in response to the threat of legal action by the FTC, which found the previous warranty terms unlawful. The same admonition was extended towards Microsft and Nintendo, so it’s likely that they’ll follow up in a similar fashion.
If you still don’t have a PlayStation 4 console, you can grab one on Amazon.
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