The Federal Trade Commission fined Epic Games $275 million on Monday, December 19. Besides the fine, the Fortnite Battle Royale developer will have to pay its players $245 million.
This is the largest fine of this type in FTC history and the largest refund in the video gaming industry. However, the FTC takes this matter seriously, especially because Fortnite is played by a lot of younger players.
After the settlement, Epic Games released a public statement, responding to the $520 million lawsuit and announcing several changes in its popular video game.
Epic Games responds to the lawsuit
It’s important to note that Epic Games agreed to pay the FTC fine. This means that the lawsuit against the video game publisher was settled, which benefits both the customers and the FTC.
Here is what the Fortnite developer released in its statement:
No developer creates a game with the intention of ending up here. The video game industry is a place of fast-moving innovation, where player expectations are high and new ideas are paramount. Statutes written decades ago don’t specify how gaming ecosystems should operate. The laws have not changed, but their application has evolved and long-standing industry practices are no longer enough. We accepted this agreement because we want Epic to be at the forefront of consumer protection and provide the best experience for our players.
Epic Games
Besides all the money that Epic Games has to pay, the development team has to make certain changes to Fortnite Battle Royale. These changes mostly affect in-game purchases, such as Item Shop transactions.
Due to this, Epic has announced that players’ payment information will no longer be saved automatically. Instead, players will be asked explicitly whether or not they want their payment info saved.
Epic Games has drastically improved privacy in Fortnite over the past few months. With the release of Chapter 4, the game developer introduced the so-called cabinet accounts, which improve parental controls.
The Fortnite creator will have to keep making changes and improving privacy to comply with all the necessary laws. While this fine is certainly massive, it will protect a lot of consumers, especially parents who give their kids unlimited access to the video game.
