When you turn on your Xbox Series Farming simulator 22you might think you own the game, but you’d be wrong. You actually paid for a license to play the game, not to own it. Companies can revoke the permit at any time. It doesn’t happen that often, but it does happen, especially with older games: Ubisoft made headlines earlier this year when deleted racing game The crew in Decembertook its servers offline and then began revoking licenses for the game. Licensing versus actually owning a game becomes an issue again when you consider where your games go when you die. You technically cannot pass your license on to someone else, per many companies’ policies.
A new law in California (AB2426), signed Tuesday by Gov. Gavin Newsom, is an effort to bring transparency to the buying and selling of digital goods like movies, ebooks and, yes, video games. California lawmaker Jacqui Irwin introduced the billpartly, after we heard about Ubisoft’s move with The crew. The bill won’t change the fact that we all license games rather than actually own them, but it will force companies operating in California to be more transparent about it. Companies and storefronts that would have to comply include Microsoft with the Microsoft Store, Valve with Steam, Sony with the PlayStation Store, Nintendo with its eShop and publishers with their own stores, such as Ubisoft’s Ubisoft Store.
Polygon has contacted all previously listed companies, but had not heard back at the time of publication.
The law is expected to go into effect on January 1, banning companies that operate digital storefronts from using words like “purchase” or “purchase” unless the company is clear that it is selling licenses and not “unrestricted ownership interest in the digital asset.” . ” This notice will have to be “distinct and separate” from other purchase terms, according to the bill. The law does not apply to subscription-based services, free downloads such as demos, or companies that offer “permanent offline download(s)” of digital goods. Companies are fined for violating the rules.
“By sending AB 2426 to Governor Newsom, California is now the first state to recognize that when digital media retailers use terms like ‘buy’ and ‘purchase’ to advertise digital media licenses, they are engaging in false advertising,” says Professor at the University of Michigan. Aaron Perzanowski said in an Irwin news release. “Consumers around the world deserve to understand that when they spend money on digital movies, music, books and games, these so-called ‘purchases’ can disappear without notice. There is still important work to be done to secure consumers’ digital rights, but AB 2426 is a critical step in the right direction.”
Digital purchases are already ubiquitous as physical media becomes less easy to find. Stores like Best Buy have stopped selling physical movies as a wholeand it wouldn’t be surprising if more retailers followed suit. Physical video games use the disc as a license, and that disc is yours. But a company can still take servers offline, for example; access is still not guaranteed.