Nintendo Escapes Digital Pre-Order Dispute in EU

Nintendo’s digital pre-order policy has been found to not violate EU consumer rights laws.

Following hearings in December 2019, the EU court dismissed the lawsuit in favor of Nintendo. The German Consumer Protection Authority has already appealed the ruling.

This lawsuit, brought by the Norwegian Consumer Council, accused Nintendo of violating European consumer rights law because Nintendo refused to cancel digital orders. Specifically, the Norwegian Consumer Council alleged that Nintendo’s no-cancelation policy violated the Consumer Rights Directive, which provides that customers in the European Union have the right to withdraw and refund purchases if distribution has not begun.

As more video games move towards predominantly digital distribution it will be interesting to see how consumers, the market, and video game publishers respond to the new paradigm.

We will provide more updates as the case continues.