European Watchdogs Demand Spielunternehmen stoppen räuberische virtuelle Währungsverkäufe an Kinder | Diese Regeln für gesunde Menschenverstand schützen Erwachsene genauso wie Kinder
https://www.techspot.com/news/107270-european-watchdogs-demand-game-companies-stop-predatory-virtual.html
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From the article: Europe’s Consumer Protection Cooperation Network (CPCN) has initiated an enforcement action with the European Commission (EC) to reign in the predatory monetization of a gaming company called Star Stable Entertainment, maker of the MMORPG/horse simulation „Star Stable Online.“ The CPCN aims to force the developer to be more transparent about the actual costs of in-game purchases. It’s asking for a soft ban on in-game currency since no formal laws explicitly prohibit it.
Like many other game companies, Star Stable obfuscates the actual cost of in-game products by listing them in the game’s virtual currency, „star coins.“ The problem is that star coins aren’t a one-to-one conversion to euros. In fact, this monetization model intentionally makes currency conversion practically impossible. It does this through bundled coin packages sold at a „discount.“ Star Stable Online’s target demographic is young players, but even adults would have difficulty confirming exactly how much a purchase costs them.
The CPCN’s action stems from a Swedish Consumers‘ Association complaint. After investigating, the CPCN noted several areas that appear predatory, especially toward children. These include:
*Direct appeals to children in the advertisements, urging them to buy, or persuade adults to buy for them, in-game currency or items.*
*The use of pressuring techniques such as ‚purchase through time-limited practices‘ to unduly influence children to purchase in-game virtual currency or in-game content.*
*A lack of clear and transparent information, adapted to children, about buying and using in-game virtual currency, leading consumers to spend more than they intend to.*
*Failure by the company to ensure that the influencers promoting their products clearly disclose commercial content and do not unduly influence children with their marketing techniques.*
These marketing gimmicks are relatively common and work just as well against adults as with children. The sole difference is that adults spend their money (or credit) instead of their parents‘ funds. Both organizations are asking the company to be more transparent about the commercial purchases children may encounter in the game.
Anyone who knows anything about gaming knows how this ends.
There’s too much money in microtransactions now, sure the EU will start by targeting a small player, but the bigger ones stand to lose billions, and won’t hesitate to spend some of that to make this quietly go away.
Monetization in video games is gambling at it’s worst, an entirely digital space that can morph to have the maximum effect on its target audience, while changing to skirt gambling laws. The fact that governments have allowed this to become so widespread is going to be written about in textbooks about addiction disorders once generation alpha hits adulthood.