Groups urge U.S. to probe ‘loot box’ on Electronic Arts online game

WASHINGTON, June 2 (Reuters) - Consumer advocates on Thursday urged U.S. regulators to analyze online game maker Electronic Arts Inc (EA.O) for what they are saying was the misleading use of a digital "loot field" that "aggressively" urges gamers to spend more money while enjoying a preferred soccer game.

The groups Fairplay, Heart for Digital Democracy and 13 other organizations urged the Federal Commerce Fee to probe the EA sport "FIFA: Ultimate Crew".

Within the game, gamers construct a soccer team using avatars of actual players and compete against other groups. In a letter to the FTC, the groups said the sport normally costs $50 to $100 however that the corporate pushed push gamers to spend extra.

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"It entices gamers to buy packs in the hunt for particular gamers," said the letter sent by these groups together with the Shopper Federation of America and Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Well being and others.

The packs, or loot packing containers, are packages of digital content material generally bought with real cash that give the purchaser a possible benefit in a game. They are often purchased with digital forex, which can obscure how much is spent, they mentioned.

"The probabilities of opening a coveted card, such as a Participant of the 12 months, are miniscule until a gamer spends hundreds of dollars on points or plays for 1000's of hours to earn coins," the teams said in the letter.

Digital Arts said in an announcement on Thursday that of the game's millions of players, 78% haven't made an in-game buy.

"Spending is at all times elective," an organization spokesperson said in an electronic mail statement. "We encourage using parental controls, including spend controls, which are available for every major gaming platform, together with EA's personal platforms."

The spokesperson additionally stated the corporate created a dashboard so players would track how a lot time they played, how many packs they opened and what purchases were made.

The FTC, which matches after firms engaged in misleading conduct, held a workshop on loot containers in 2019. In a "workers perspective" which adopted, the company noted that online game microtransactions have change into a multibillion-dollar market.

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Reporting by Diane Bartz in Washington Modifying by David Gregorio and Matthew Lewis

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