Qawshun
ChiefNem
Remember when Sony said your PlayStation 3 would be a "computer," not just a game console? Remember when Sony backed up that claim by letting anyone (including the US Air Force) install Linux on the thing? Remember when Sony broke its promises by unceremoniously deleting that "OtherOS" featurewith a firmware update?
If so, you may have just earned up to $65 -- and you've got exactly one month to claim your money.
Nearly eight years after Sony removing the option to install Linux on the PS3, allegedly for security reasons, a court all but approved a settlement in a class-action lawsuit this past December.
Sony has agreed to pay $3.75 million to settle the suit. The lawyers get a third of that, the five plaintiffs will see up to $3,500 each, and the settlement organizers will get an estimated $300,000 to $400,000 too -- but that's still easily a couple million bucks left over to pay back PS3 owners like you.
How to submit your claim
Where do you begin? If you purchased an original "Fat" PS3 between November 1, 2006, and April 1, 2010 at an "authorized retailer" -- so not Craiglist, where I bought mine -- you're eligible to receive up to $65 for each original PS3 you bought. You can submit multiple claims if you bought more than one. Here's the claim form you'll need. The deadline is April 15, 2018.
Oh, but there's one more wrinkle: You'll need to legally swearthat you knew that it was possible to install Linux on the PS3 and/or lost some of the value of your PS3 when Sony removed the option.
You'll also need your PS3's serial number, or your PlayStation Network username or sign-in ID, and you may need to tell the settlement authorities when and where you purchased your console.
For easy reference, eligible PS3s should include the original 20GB, 60GB and later 40GB and 80GB models, but not the PS3 Slim or PS3 Super Slim. Here's another picture to help you identify the right model:
If so, you may have just earned up to $65 -- and you've got exactly one month to claim your money.
Nearly eight years after Sony removing the option to install Linux on the PS3, allegedly for security reasons, a court all but approved a settlement in a class-action lawsuit this past December.
Sony has agreed to pay $3.75 million to settle the suit. The lawyers get a third of that, the five plaintiffs will see up to $3,500 each, and the settlement organizers will get an estimated $300,000 to $400,000 too -- but that's still easily a couple million bucks left over to pay back PS3 owners like you.
How to submit your claim
Where do you begin? If you purchased an original "Fat" PS3 between November 1, 2006, and April 1, 2010 at an "authorized retailer" -- so not Craiglist, where I bought mine -- you're eligible to receive up to $65 for each original PS3 you bought. You can submit multiple claims if you bought more than one. Here's the claim form you'll need. The deadline is April 15, 2018.
Oh, but there's one more wrinkle: You'll need to legally swearthat you knew that it was possible to install Linux on the PS3 and/or lost some of the value of your PS3 when Sony removed the option.
You'll also need your PS3's serial number, or your PlayStation Network username or sign-in ID, and you may need to tell the settlement authorities when and where you purchased your console.
For easy reference, eligible PS3s should include the original 20GB, 60GB and later 40GB and 80GB models, but not the PS3 Slim or PS3 Super Slim. Here's another picture to help you identify the right model:
