Genshin Impact publisher Hoyovers has agreed to a settlement with the United States Federal Trade Commission in which it agrees to pay a $20 million fine and a ban on the sale of loot boxes to teenagers under 16 years of age.
IN press release by the FTC, the agency announced that the developers of Genshin Impact “agreed to pay $20 million and prevent children under 16 from making in-game purchases without parental consent” as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.
FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection Director Samuel Levine says Genshin Impact “deceived children, teenagers and other gamers into spending hundreds of dollars on prizes they had little chance of winning.” Levine adds that companies using “dark pattern tactics will be held accountable” if they defraud gamers, especially youthful children and teenagers.
The main allegations brought against Hoyoverse by the FTC are that the developer violated the Children’s Online Privacy Policy by promoting Genshin Impact to children and collecting their personal information, and by deceiving players about the chances of winning a “five-star” loot box prize and how much there would be cost to open a loot box.
The FTC claims that the virtual currency system in Genshin Impact was confusing and unfair, and that the system ultimately obscures the fact that players will ultimately spend gigantic sums of money to receive “five-star rewards” and that children have spent hundreds or even thousands of dollars to do so . win them.
In addition to the fine and ban, Hoyoverse will have to disclose the exchange rates of its virtual currency for loot boxes, delete personal information collected from children under 13, and comply with COPPA regulations in the future.
Matt Kim is senior features editor at IGN.
