Sony has agreed to a preliminary settlement of $15m in a civil complaint against the company for a breach of the PlayStation Network (PSN) in April 2011 that left 77 million accounts compromised.
American customers who qualify will be entitled to a free game for one of Sony’s consoles, three free PlayStation 3 themes, or a subscription to their premium gaming service PlayStation Plus.
Those who participated in the firm’s conciliatory "Welcome Back" scheme will be able to choose one of the above offers, while those who didn’t will be able to pick two.
Identity theft victims can also receive $2,500 in compensation as part of the deal, so long as total complaints do not exceed $1m in which case benefits will be reduced proportionately.
Customers of the firm’s music service Qriocity, now called Music Unlimited, will receive one free month of service if the judge approves the settlement, provided they do not also have a PSN account.
Sony Europe was fined £250,000 by the UK’s information commissioner’s office (ICO) last year for the breach.
