The Children’s Commissioner for England – the non-departmental public body that is responsible for protecting and promoting the rights of children, has joined the fight against video gaming’s in-game items, also known as loot boxes. The organisation harshly criticised the Government’s decision not to suspend harmful microtransactions and noted such a decision puts children in danger.
As Casino Guardian reported earlier, the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) announced that, for the time being, loot boxes will not be banned in the UK. The body announced that instead of regulating microtransactions, it prefers to force gambling operators to impose some voluntary restrictions, such as requiring parental consent before selling loot boxes to minors.
The Children’s Commissioner, however, believes that such a measure is not enough to protect underage individuals. According to the non-departmental public organisation, children who buy loot boxes would often display symptoms of gambling-related harm, such as chasing losses. In addition, previous research has suggested that video games’ in-game purchases definitely have similarities to gambling.
Previously, it was revealed that 93% of children in the UK play games on their personal computers. According to estimates, 31% of all young gamers find it hard to track their losses when purchasing loot boxes and other in-game items. That is exactly why campaigners believe that it is extremely important to protect the younger generations by not exposing them to gambling harm from a young age.
British Children Need to Be Better Protected against Gaming-Related Harm, Commissioner Says
The Children’s Commissioner for England is aimed at improving the online space and making it safer for underage individuals. According to the body, the UK Government needs to pay attention to parents’ demands and at least suspend minors from accessing loot boxes.
The researchers found out that the chances for customers to actually get the valuable content of so-called loot boxes were extremely small. They provided evidence that players have approximately 4.2% chance to get a FIFA Gold 84+ player from the loot boxes offered by the game’s developers – the video gaming company Electronic Arts (EA). Still, a large number of players simply ignore the low chances of hitting a valuable piece of content and would try to play until they get the player that they want. This replicates so-called loss-chasing in gambling and exposes children to serious harm that could result in massive financial losses for their parents.
For the time being, loot boxes are not considered a form of gambling under the provisions of the current Gambling Act 2005, although there are certainly a lot of similarities between the two. Everyone in the UK gambling sector is currently awaiting the Government to finally publish its White Paper that would see the country’s gambling laws become more up-to-date.
According to various campaigners, this is an opportunity for the local authorities to introduce measures that would actually make sure children and at-risk gamblers are better protected against potential risks and harms associated with gambling and gaming. However, the video game industry, just like the gambling sector, is a massive contributor to the UK economy, which is considered one of the reasons why British lawmakers are unwilling to ban loot boxes or regulate them in any way.
- Author
Daniel Williams
