Epic Games has been fined €1,125,000 by the Netherlands Authority for Consumer and Markets for engaging in “unfair commercial practices” regarding Fortnite players under the age of 18.
According to Gamesindustry.biz, the ACM investigation revealed that the Fortnite creator exploited children’s vulnerabilities through design choices in its item shop, including the use of phrases like “get it now” or “buy now” in advertisements.
These practices were deemed as illegally aggressive commercial practices, for which the company was fined €562,500. The investigation also found that Epic Games used countdown timers on ads for available items, exploiting children’s fear of missing out. The publisher was fined a further €562,500 for this violation.
Epic responds amidst ACM deadline
“The findings in the ACM’s decision contain significant factual errors about how Fortnite and the Item Shop operate,” Epic Games told Gamesindustry.biz. “The ACM is mandating changes that would result in a poor experience for players. We will appeal this decision.”
Epic went on to say that “while our appeal is pending, players in the Netherlands that are under the age of 18 will not be able to see or purchase items that are in the shop for less than 48 hours, beginning May 24, 2024.”
The ACM has set a deadline of Monday, June 10 2024 for Epic to address the violations. The company has also informed the ACM of its plans to implement changes in response.
“Traders must take into account the fact that children are more vulnerable to certain commercial practices than regular consumers,” said the ACM. “Epic actually exploited these types of vulnerabilities. As such, it failed to observe the required care that can be reasonably expected from traders when dealing with children.”
