The European Parliament today has voted to adopt a report calling for the Parliament to take a multitude of actions to address perceived problems with the video game industry. According to GamesIndustry.biz, the report was led by MEP Adriana Maldonado López and received 577 votes in favor, 56 against and 11 abstentions.
The report was divided into requests for the European Commission to look at age ratings, consumer protection, monetization and industry support. Emphasis was made on finding ways to protect younger consumers from current gaming industry practices, in particular loot boxes and in-game purchases. In response to potential financially dangerous practices in gaming, the report called for a need “to adapt the current framework for online games or to propose standalone legislation” and “to assess the use of gold farming in connection with financial crimes and human rights abuses and to present appropriate initiatives if necessary.” Skin betting was another point of concern, with a stronger directive given to “put an end to illegal practices allowing anyone to exchange, sell or bet on in-game and third-party sites.”
Aside from concerns on the dangers found in the in-game monetization practices, López also stated developers should “avoid designing games that feed addiction,” noting the developing risk of gaming addiction. Other consumer protections were asked for in the report, such as “a common European identity verification system to help check the age of players” and the collection of “EU-wide data on the average time spent playing games, average in-game spending, socio-psychological effects” which would be presented in an annual report to the European Parliament.
López also wished to highlight the positives of the current and future European gaming industry, in particular with the proposal of a European Video Game Strategy that could help boost the industry to its highest potential. Additionally, the report called for the creation of a new annual European online video game award that would be given to the game that best matched European Parliament expectations.
GamesIndustry.biz was also issued a joint statement by the Interactive Software Federation of Europe and the European Game Developers Federation ahead of the vote, which warned that the new regulations of the European Parliament would impact the ability of game developers to fund development for new titles.