Seven videogame companies, including Epic Games and Electronic Arts, are facing a complaint from the European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) and 22 other groups. The companies are accused of misleading players, especially children, into spending money on their games, as per the reports.
According to the complaint, the companies design their games to be addictive and use tricks like premium in-game currencies forcing players to spend more money on the platform. The BEUC argues that even though games are virtual, they should still follow real-world rules to protect consumers, especially children. The complaint was filed with the European Commission and the European Network of Consumer Authorities, and the BEUC is calling for regulators to take action against the companies.
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They say that seven video game companies are tricking players into spending money. The BEUC leader, Agustin Reyna, wants regulators to take action to prevent children from being victimised by this indirect scam. He says that video game companies are using tricks like special currencies to get players to spend more money, especially children. He stated that it is unfair and video game companies should follow the same rules as everyone else. The BEUC is worried that children are spending too much money on video games.
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The seven companies include Epic Games, Electronic Arts, Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard, Mojang Studios, Supercell (owned by China’s Tencent), Ubisoft (from France), and Roblox. As per the reports, these companies are tricking players, especially children, into spending too much money on digital items in games. The problem is that players can’t easily see how much they’re spending for the game, so they end up spending more than they want to. Additionally, when players use special in-game currencies, they often don’t get the rights they should have. The BEUC wants to stop this from happening and protect consumers, especially children, from being taken advantage of their gaming addiction.