DCMS now ties loot box purchases to parental consent

The UK government may be on the backfoot on loot boxes and regulations in the latest Gambling Act, but the Department of Culture, Media, and Sports is prepared to step in. The Department promised to deliver a framework that would avoid banning loot boxes under gambling law but still be an efficient way to regulate them. This approach does make sense in retrospect, as loot boxes’ legal status as a form of gambling has been hard to prove.

Belgium has been able to ban them, but the Netherlands is still struggling, which calls for alternative and smarter ways to enact quick and efficient legislation. According to the Department, loot boxes should be unavailable to minors and children without explicit parental consent. The DCSM is determined to make sure that children are protected from potentially harmful digital goods that have been linked to problem gambling, although not directly as the cause of it.

Now, though, the DCSM is stepping up to make sure that this "link between loot boxes and gambling harms," as well as the broader implications on children’s health and even finance, may be addressed heads-on. Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said that children will no longer be able to go on spending sprees without their parent's explicit consent.

This, Dorries believes, will help limit any potential harmful effect loot boxes may have on young children and teenagers. The government objected to incorporating loot boxes into the Gambling Act review, arguing that many kids may be tempted to simply register in their parent’s name or use their accounts outright.

Moving forward, though, the onus will be on the industry and parents to make sure that underage individuals don’t go on spending sprees. "Children should be free to enjoy gaming safely, whilst giving parents and guardians the peace of mind they need," Dorries explained. The measure is not entirely original, as some companies have acted in anticipation of broader discontent over loot boxes.

For example, Xbox now requires U-18 individuals to receive parental or guardian consent before they can spend any money in-game. Just like with gambling, there are some individuals in video games that tend to spend more on this content than the majority. In fact, loot box purchases seem to be driven by a minority of players.

At the same time, DCSM will seek to deepen its understanding of the issue through a new Video Games Research Framework. The latest decision is the result of a public consultation that took place in 2020 and the data that was collected at the time. Some 55,000 children in the United Kingdom are said to have a gambling problem. The only way to fix this is to empower people to gamble responsibly and minimize the risk fators.

Image credit: EA