Digital items are highly desirable and collectible, driving repeat buying.Children find it difficult to track their spending in-games and fail to understand the value of money, leading to poor spending decisions.In-game purchases such as loot boxes cause financial and emotional harm to children and young people.Our research demonstrates the dangers of in-game purchasing, especially when game developers actively use techniques drawn from gambling to encourage children and young people to buy in-game items.” ![]() The report’s lead author Dr James Ash, Reader in Technology, Space and Society at Newcastle University said: “Children and young people are spending increasing amounts of time and money on gaming. They often appear as virtual treasure chests, crates, or card packs and contain highly collectible items such as skins (a graphic download which changes the appearance of characters in video games) or weapons. Loot boxes are features in video games which are accessed through gameplay, or purchased with in-game items, virtual currencies, or directly with real-world money. In a "staff perspective" which followed, the agency noted that video game microtransactions have become a multibillion-dollar market.In the report Between Gaming and Gambling: Children, Young People, and Paid Reward Systems in Games, academics from Newcastle and Loughborough Universities found there are risks for young video game players who make in-game purchases, such as buying a loot box or battle pass. The FTC, which goes after companies engaged in deceptive behavior, held a workshop on loot boxes in 2019. The spokesperson also said the company created a dashboard so players would track how much time they played, how many packs they opened and what purchases were made. "We encourage the use of parental controls, including spend controls, that are available for every major gaming platform, including EA's own platforms." "Spending is always optional," a company spokesperson said in an email statement. "The chances of opening a coveted card, such as a Player of the Year, are miniscule unless a gamer spends thousands of dollars on points or plays for thousands of hours to earn coins," the groups said in the letter.Įlectronic Arts said in a statement on Thursday that of the game's millions of players, 78% have not made an in-game purchase. They can be purchased with digital currency, which can obscure how much is spent, they said. The packs, or loot boxes, are packages of digital content sometimes purchased with real money that give the purchaser a potential advantage in a game. "It entices players to buy packs in search of special players," said the letter sent by these groups along with the Consumer Federation of America and Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Health and others. In a letter to the FTC, the groups said the game usually costs $50 to $100 but that the company pushed push players to spend more. ![]() In the game, players build a soccer team using avatars of real players and compete against other teams. The groups Fairplay, Center for Digital Democracy and 13 other organizations urged the Federal Trade Commission to probe the EA game "FIFA: Ultimate Team". ![]() regulators to investigate video game maker Electronic Arts Inc (EA.O) for what they say was the misleading use of a digital "loot box" that "aggressively" urges players to spend more money while playing a popular soccer game. WASHINGTON, June 2 (Reuters) - Consumer advocates on Thursday urged U.S.
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