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"Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

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Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#111

Post by oneeyedpigeon »

fnayr wrote: post #108
showsover wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is not misleading because the player does not need to spend money. Which is the definition of 'free' that is used.

The player does not need to spend money for the majority of freemium games either.

'Need' is tricky to define in this case. Many 'freemium' games are very different experiences based on whether or not you pay via additional IAP. From what I gather, not having actually played it, Dungeon Keeper is about the most extreme example of this. It sounds like you really do need to pay in order to play the actual game, as opposed to playing something which many would describe as not really being the game.

Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#112

Post by Heliosmaster »

fnayr wrote: post #108
showsover wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is not misleading because the player does not need to spend money. Which is the definition of 'free' that is used.

The player does not need to spend money for the majority of freemium games either.

In a normal free program with ads, the user has no way of spending money. In a freemium, you decide whether the game is free or not for you.

Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#113

Post by joesb »

eropple wrote: post #33
x0054 wrote: post #11

The solution for this would be to change the purchase approval model where you have to enter your password to purchase anything. You can have to options: 1) authorize until closed, or 2) authorize just this purchase. This way kids could not run up charges using iAP. However, if you an adult, and you have purchased $100s of iAP, and now you feel bad about it, I have 0 sympathy for you. Overall, this is just EU being E…

> However, if you an adult, and you have purchased $100s of iAP, and now you feel bad about it, I have 0 sympathy for you. So you understand that companies like King design their "free" games to be next-to-impossible if you don't give them money, while employing teams of psychologists to determine the best way to subvert your will through forced failure while simultaneously driving manipulative CTAs at you while you…

Many of old console game are well-known for being next-to-impossible to beat but people have no problem with it; see those Ninja Toad game or Circus game from SNES day.

Unless the game is theorically impossible to beat, then you are a sucker for wanting to use money to substitute for your practice.

Seriously, you are the one paying money just so you can show off to your friend that you beat the same level other spends weeks to beat, and then the company offering IAP is the douche one?

Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#114

Post by ig1 »

A lot of people are making false assumptions about what this is about; Here's the actual EU release rather than a blog rewrite:

http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-14-187_en.htm?locale...

The actual issue is "Often consumers are not fully aware that they are spending money because their credit cards get charged by default." - so it's not an issue of people disliking paywalls in free games, it's an issue of people not realizing they're handing over real cash in games which are marked free.

The EU also has't said they want Free/IAP games to not be marked as free, but what they said is 'Games advertised as “free” should not mislead consumers about the true costs involved' (i.e IAP should be made more explicit).

Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#115

Post by sklivvz1971 »

As a father, thank you. Games with in-app purchases are NOT free -- the reason of the intervention is that in a lot of cases, especially children, people were charged without noticing.

These game should not be mingled with free games and parents should have an option to forbid them.

Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#116

Post by claudius »

dreamdu5t wrote: post #82
djur wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The nation I'm a citizen of has a government that renews the consent of the government on a regular basis with free, fair, universal elections. I'm sorry if you don't live in such a country. The guillotine is a traditional remedy for that. Apple doesn't have to do that because we don't rely on it to safeguard our life, liberty, and property. If it disappeared tomorrow the economy would take a hit but life would go on…

Elections aren't an election of anyone's consent to be governed.

You are free not to use any of the services offered by society to you, which obviously requires leaving the country.

Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#117

Post by Kiro »

sklivvz1971 wrote: post #115

As a father, thank you. Games with in-app purchases are NOT free -- the reason of the intervention is that in a lot of cases, especially children, people were charged without noticing. These game should not be mingled with free games and parents should have an option to forbid them.

Can children have credit cards?

Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#118

Post by lrem »

Kiro wrote: post #117
sklivvz1971 wrote: post #115

As a father, thank you. Games with in-app purchases are NOT free -- the reason of the intervention is that in a lot of cases, especially children, people were charged without noticing. These game should not be mingled with free games and parents should have an option to forbid them.

Can children have credit cards?

Effectively? Pretty much yes, the same way they can have anything...

Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#119

Post by ctz »

taspeotis wrote: post #8

When I look at free games on the App Store I see if it says "offers in-app purchases". If it does I look at the in-app purchases. If the in-app purchases are "x00 Special In-Game Currency Units" then I don't install the game. Not sure we need legislation to avoid being ripped off...

Apple added all this only after losing a massive class action on IAP.

So, you're right that we probably don't need legislation now to avoid being ripped off, but it would have been preferable to have it when people were being ripped off. That does require consumer legislation to keep up with technology, though.

Re: "Free-to-play" misleading advertising in Europe

#120

Post by alkonaut »

I wholeheartedly agree with this. The point for me isn't so much "protection" against unforseen expenses it's just that I want to know up front what costs money and what doesn't.

When I browse for a free app I don't want to see the crippled in-app-unlockable app next to the truly free app.

Strict rules for prices in marketing is a prerequisite for a functioning market, my other pet peeve is the contract phone. Not only do I think telcos should be required to market the total cost (which they are already at least here) , I want to take it one step further and completely ban the marketing of the small upfront cost as the price.

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