Summary
Case note on the judgment of the Court of Justice of 17 October 2024 in Sony Computer Entertainment v Datel (C-159/23). Datel’s Action Replay software let players of Sony’s PSP games obtain cheats by changing the variables the game stores in the console’s memory, without altering its source or object code. Following BSA and SAS Institute, the Court held that such execution variables are not a form of expression of a computer program and so fall outside the exclusive right of adaptation under Directive 2009/24. The note regrets that the Court did not consider Directive 2001/29 or define “transformation”, and explains that publishers keep other remedies, while the ruling gives legal certainty to users who modify execution variables for interoperability or integration.
Reference
H. Haouideg, « L'arrêt Sony Computer Entertainment : un petit pas pour les tricheurs et un grand pas pour la définition de la notion de programme d'ordinateur », R.D.T.I., n° 98, 2025, p. 115.