Will video game ‘ loot boxes’ be curbed under gambling laws?
Children lured into high spending
VIDEO game ‘loot boxes’ could be regulated under gambling laws, ministers said last night.
Digital minister Caroline Dinenage issued an appeal for evidence amid claims the boxes may encourage or lead to problem gambling among children.
Loot boxes, which can be purchased in many computer games, award players random virtual prizes which can be used to improve their playing experience. The chance element has raised concerns that the boxes could encourage gambling-like behaviour, particularly among young people.
The minister asked for evidence from players, parents, gambling charities and the industry itself. If the evidence confirms that loot boxes promote gambling, they could be included in a review of the Gambling Act. This could mean that the Gambling Commission would be able to intervene and take action.
In an article for MailOnline, Miss Dinenage said: ‘I am determined to ensure that we have enough evidence to understand the potential risk of loot boxes.
‘Do they promote gamblinglike behaviour, potentially putting children on the slippery slope to addiction?’
This year a House of Lords committee demanded action on loot boxes. Its chairman, former BBC chief Lord Grade, told the Mail: ‘ The Government must make loot boxes a gambling activity, because legally they are not captured by the Act. It’s teaching children to gamble, and kids love them.’
A report by the Commons culture select committee last year concluded that loot boxes were integral to the revenues of major games companies. MPs said loot boxes that can be bought with real-world money rather than credits and do not reveal their contents in advance should be considered games of chance played for money’s worth and regulated by the Gambling Act.The report highlighted a case in which one player of Electronic Arts’s FIFA series spent up to £1,000 a year on them.
The Conservatives promised action on loot boxes in their general election manifesto.
It said: ‘The Gambling Act is increasingly becoming an analogue law in a digital age. We will review it, with a particular focus on tackling issues around loot boxes and credit card misuse.’
However, the Government also recognises the important contribution computer games make to the British economy.
Video games are played by over half of the population and the sector is a key part of the UK’s creative industries. It contributed £2.6 billion to the economy in 2018, employed 27,000 people in 2019 and has grown more than 16 times faster than the wider UK economy since 2010.
The Government will also undertake further research into the wider impact of video games on behaviour.
Matt Zarb-Cousin, from the campaign group Clean Up Gambling, said: ‘ Loot boxes have blurred the line between gaming and gambling. We need a wholesale redefinition of what gambling in the digital age actually is. The Gambling Commission will then be able to get to grips with this issue and protect children.’