Ubisoft Insists You Don’t Own Your Games In The Crew Lawsuit Defense

As Ubisoft continues to struggle to find its footing in the current gaming market, the company also finds itself embroiled in a legal battle with gamers that started late last year. The lawsuit stems from the decision to shut down the servers for its online racing game, The Crew. And the latest argument the company has presented to the court will likely anger many gamers.

Ubisoft’s lawyers are claiming that when someone buys a game, that person isn’t getting “unfettered ownership rights in the game.” Instead, what buyers are getting is an access license that allows them to play a game. The company is using this argument in asking the court to dismiss the case as the plaintiffs have allegedly not suffered “cognizable injury.” It also points to the statute of limitations and alleged inadequate arguments made by the plaintiffs.

The plaintiffs responded to these claims in an amended complaint. First, lawyers for the plaintiffs tackled the statute of limitations issue by submitting photos of packaging Ubisoft used for the game, which show that the activation code is valid until 2099. Additionally, the amended complaint brings up a new issue, in which the lawyers claim that the in-game currency used in The Crew meets the requirement of a gift certification in the state of California. By law, gift certificates can’t expire. By shutting down the game, Ubisoft forcefully expired the in-game currency.


It's understandable that Ubisoft is arguing the case this way, as it’s how game purchasing has evolved in the digital game era, even if many were unaware of it. What’s difficult to grasp is why Ubisoft is willing to take the severe brand equity hit in making this argument, when it could’ve easily taken a different path. Then again, it's possible that Ubisoft's goal is more about setting precedence in the courts.  

Regardless, a better option for the company would’ve been to release a patch to enable offline play. This is likely a less expensive option compared to paying attorneys for a case that might stretch for several years. All of this could have been avoided, without being made a villain in the gaming community, as the company is obviously looking to drive sales revenue.

Ubisoft has until April 29 to respond to the amended complaint, as the court has now been asked to turn this case into a class action lawsuit.