Only recently there was a lot of debate in relevant forums as to whether loot boxes should actually be regarded as a gamble in Germany. The lawyer’s answer to this is probably“It depends!“. You can find a few legal explanations on the subject in this article of mine.
Google also reacted at the end of May and released new Google Play Terms and Conditions:
“Apps offering mechanisms to receive randomized virtual items from a purchase (i.e. ‘loot boxes’) must clearly disclose the odds of receiving those items in advance of purchase”
This means that Google Play requirements are the same as in Apple’s App Store.
Due to the legal situation, I can currently only advise every game developer to have their own mechanisms, terms and conditions and gameplay legally checked. It is precisely after these changes that the first warnings are not likely to be far away.
Incidentally, when considering the topic, the question arises as to whether the Free2Play monetization model is permissible at all 🙂 Two of my articles on the subject can be found below
https://itmedialaw.com/ist-das-vertriebsmodell-free2play-wettbewerbswidrig/ https://itmedialaw.com/verstossen-free2play-spiele-gegen-die-preisangabenverordnung/
Marian Härtel ist Rechtsanwalt und Fachanwalt für IT-Recht mit einer über 25-jährigen Erfahrung als Unternehmer und Berater in den Bereichen Games, E-Sport, Blockchain, SaaS und Künstliche Intelligenz. Seine Beratungsschwerpunkte umfassen neben dem IT-Recht insbesondere das Urheberrecht, Medienrecht sowie Wettbewerbsrecht. Er betreut schwerpunktmäßig Start-ups, Agenturen und Influencer, die er in strategischen Fragen, komplexen Vertragsangelegenheiten sowie bei Investitionsprojekten begleitet. Dabei zeichnet sich seine Beratung durch einen interdisziplinären Ansatz aus, der juristische Expertise und langjährige unternehmerische Erfahrung miteinander verbindet. Ziel seiner Tätigkeit ist stets, Mandanten praxisorientierte Lösungen anzubieten und rechtlich fundierte Unterstützung bei der Umsetzung innovativer Geschäftsmodelle zu gewährleisten.
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