( CNN ) -- People do n't typically pay attention to software agreements , but PlayStation owners may want to read a recent update to their digital contract . Last week Sony changed the terms-of-service document for its PlayStation Network , asking U.S. customers to forfeit their rights to file class-action lawsuits against the company and its partners . Customers can opt out by sending the company a letter in the mail . Sony 's PlayStation Network , which allows subscribers to play games and watch movies online , was down for weeks last spring following a security breach that exposed personal details of 77 million users . Users immediately began filing class-action lawsuits . Sony said this week that the new terms-of-service changes were made , as some analysts suspected , in response to a Supreme Court decision in April . In that case , AT & T Mobility was permitted to include and enforce a clause in employment contracts that bars workers from bringing class-action suits . `` The Supreme Court recently ruled in the AT & T case that language like this is enforceable , '' a spokeswoman for Sony 's PlayStation unit wrote in an e-mail . `` The updated language in the TOS is designed to benefit both the consumer and the company by ensuring that there is adequate time and procedures to resolve disputes . '' Like AT & T , Sony prefers to settle disputes outside of court through a process called arbitration . Arbiters are typically retired judges who fetch an hourly rate of $ 300 or more , a fee that 's generally split between the two parties on top of any costs for hiring lawyers , said Jack Lerner , a director at the University of Southern California 's Technology Law Clinic . That would deter anyone looking to correct unfair charges of a few dollars to an individual , which could amount to millions if the problem was widespread and settled as a class action in court , he said . Arbitration also does not involve a jury , which could include people more sympathetic to consumers than to corporations . The AT & T suit was first brought in 2006 by customers who complained of being charged $ 30 in state taxes for a cell phone that was advertised as free . The 5-4 Supreme Court vote came , ironically , on the same day in April that PlayStation customers began filing class-action lawsuits against Sony for losing their personal data to hackers . Sony added the new clause last week , apparently to protect itself against potential future widespread and costly blunders . Courts have n't been lenient in the past about enforcing software agreements , despite the reality that few people read them , Lerner said . This year 's court ruling in the AT & T case likely wo n't be overturned anytime soon , unless Congress intervenes with changes to the law , he said . `` That was an absolute travesty , '' Lerner said . `` The implications for consumers ( are ) staggering . '' Sony 's new user agreement describes how to opt out of the class-action waiver . Future class-action suits against Sony from PlayStation online account-holders would only include people who made the effort to send a written letter , lowering the ultimate costs to Sony . Including an option to dodge the waiver `` was a savvy move by Sony because they did n't necessarily have to do it , '' Lerner said . The move should enable Sony to argue in court that it played fair , he said . Likely less than 1 % of PlayStation users , of whom there are more than 77 million worldwide , would go through the process of opting out , he estimated . PlayStation Network users were alerted of the class-action changes in e-mails and in a note near the top of the agreement . Gamers are unable to play online or watch Internet video from services like Netflix until they agree to the contract update on their consoles . It takes 45 seconds , using a game controller , to scroll to the part of the document that describes the legal waiver . It takes a minute and a half to scroll through the entire document , and certainly much longer to actually read it .
Sony changed its terms , asking PlayStation Network users to waive class-action rights . The change was prompted by a Supreme Court decision , says a spokeswoman . Customers began filing lawsuits against Sony in April after learning of a breach .