May 30 (SeeNews) - Romania's antitrust authority said that it has launched an investigation of a potential breach of competition rules by European subsidiaries of Japan-based conglomerate Sony regarding the market for distribution of video game consoles.
The authority has indications that Sony may have abused its dominant market position by selling video game consoles compatible with its PlayStation console exclusively through its own online store and through forbidding other distributors to sell PlayStation-compatible video games, the Competition Council said in a press release.
The investigation targets a number of Sony's European subsidiaries - Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe Limited, Sony Interactive Entertainment Network Europe Limited, and Sony Interactive Entertainment Direct Europe Limited.
The Competition Council carried out inspections at Sony premises across Europe to gather evidence for the investigation.
There are approximately 1.3 million users of Sony's PlayStation consoles in Romania, acccording to the Competition Council.