A class-action lawsuit has been filed against Sony over its attempt to block customers from filing class-action lawsuits against it.

In September, Sony revised its online terms of service, adding a clause preventing disgruntled users from binding together and launching class-action lawsuits. The move followed a ruling at the US Supreme Court in May, which ruled that mobile operator AT&T was entitled to block customers from filing class-actions, even though lower levels of the US legal system had described the company's attempt to do so as "unconscionable."

Gamespot reports that a Northern California resident began proceedings late last month on behalf of all customers who bought a PlayStation 3 and signed up for PSN before the change came in in September.

The suit claims that Sony engaged in unfair business practices by forcing consumers to either waive their legal rights or give up access to an online network they "effectively paid for" when they bought their console. It also criticises Sony for burying the clause near the end of a 21-page form, viewable only through the PS3; the company did not post the terms online as it has done in the past.