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Star Stable: En fälla för barn? En studie kring Star Stables marknadsföring gentemot barn och dess förenlighet med EU:s konsumentskyddslagstiftning

Gashi, Leandra LU (2024) LAGF03 20242
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract (Swedish)
Uppsatsen har undersökt huruvida spelföretaget Star Stable Entertainment AB marknadsföring av virtuella valutor och produkter till barn bryter mot EU:s konsumentskyddslagstiftning i ljuset av Sveriges Konsumenters anmälan mot företaget. Uppsatsen har även diskuterat om direktivet om otillbörliga affärs-metoder är anpassat för den digitala miljön med hänsyn till kommissionens aktuella fitness check på området. I huvudsak har direktivet om otillbörliga affärsmetoder, samt konsumenträttighetsdirektivet analyserats utifrån ett EU-rättslig och kritiskt perspektiv.
Dolda köp i spel genom virtuella valutor är ett vanligt förekommande fenomen där barn beräknas spendera 450 kronor i månaden på köp inuti spel. Den le-gala statusen kring... (More)
Uppsatsen har undersökt huruvida spelföretaget Star Stable Entertainment AB marknadsföring av virtuella valutor och produkter till barn bryter mot EU:s konsumentskyddslagstiftning i ljuset av Sveriges Konsumenters anmälan mot företaget. Uppsatsen har även diskuterat om direktivet om otillbörliga affärs-metoder är anpassat för den digitala miljön med hänsyn till kommissionens aktuella fitness check på området. I huvudsak har direktivet om otillbörliga affärsmetoder, samt konsumenträttighetsdirektivet analyserats utifrån ett EU-rättslig och kritiskt perspektiv.
Dolda köp i spel genom virtuella valutor är ett vanligt förekommande fenomen där barn beräknas spendera 450 kronor i månaden på köp inuti spel. Den le-gala statusen kring marknadsföringen av virtuella valutor är tvetydig och läm-nar många frågor obesvarade. I direktivet om otillbörliga affärsmetoder ges barn särskilt skydd i reklamsammanhang, dels i form av sårbara konsumen-ter och ett lagstadgat förbud mot direkta köpuppmaningar enligt artikel 5.3 och bilaga I punkt 28. Dessutom ställs det ett krav på att köperbjudanden ska vara tydliga och innehålla relevant prisinformation i enlighet med artikel 7.4(c), samt artikel 6.1 i direktivet om konsumenträttigheter. Barn garanteras därmed ett särskilt starkt rättsligt skydd i den digitala spelvärlden när de er-bjuds köp i spel.
Star Stable är PEGI 3 rekommenderat och använder sig av den virtuella valu-tan star coins. I spelet erbjuds tidsbegränsade erbjudanden i form av dubbla Star coins helger. I spelets butikssida visas de dyraste paketerbjudandena av virtuella valutor först och i spelets webbshop kan barn när som helst köpa virtuella föremål som inte är prissatta i svenska kronor. Uppsatsen fastställer att dessa marknadsföringsmetoder är otillbörliga och att Star Stable genom sin marknadsföring bryter mot förbudet att rikta direkta köpuppmaningar mot barn enligt punkt 28 bilaga I till direktivet om otillbörliga affärsmetoder. Med hänsyn till spelets färgglada design och utformning av köperbjudanden kan spelets design som standard anses locka barn till att spendera pengar. I frågan gällande huruvida Star Stable bryter mot prisinformationskravet i sin webb-shop, konstateras det att spelet inte tillhandahåller tillräcklig information om det reella värdet av de virtuella produkterna i spelet. Trots att priset för de vir-tuella föremålen visas i Star coins, är växelkursen för den virtuella valutan otydlig. Det framgår inte för konsumenter hur priset på Star coins kan beräk-nas i verklig valuta, samt des varierande kurs. Det leder till att barn kan fatta ogenomtänkta affärsbeslut i spelet utan att ha fått förståelse för den verkliga kostnaden av virtuella föremål i spelet. Följaktligen bryter spelet mot prisin-formationskravet som stadgas i direktivet om otillbörliga affärsmetoder. Av analysen framgår det att direktivet inte är fullt anpassat för den digitala miljön och i kommissionens fitness check lämnas frågan om den rättsliga statusen för transaktioner med virtuella valutor obesvarad. Således stöter direktivet på många utmaningar i sin tillämplighet på den digitala miljön. (Less)
Abstract
The essay analyses whether the gaming company Star Stable Entertainment AB´s marketing of virtual currencies and other virtual products against chil-dren violates EU consumer law, considering the Swedish Consumers Associ-ation’s complaint against the company. The paper also discusses whether the Unfair Commercial Practice Directive (UCPD) is fit for the digital environ-ment, given the European Commission’s recent Fitness Check (evaluation). In particular, the UCPD and the Consumer Rights Directive (CRD) have been analysed from an EU-method and critical perspective.
Hidden in-game purchases through virtual currencies have become a wide-spread practice, with children estimated to spend approximately 450 SEK per month on them. The legal... (More)
The essay analyses whether the gaming company Star Stable Entertainment AB´s marketing of virtual currencies and other virtual products against chil-dren violates EU consumer law, considering the Swedish Consumers Associ-ation’s complaint against the company. The paper also discusses whether the Unfair Commercial Practice Directive (UCPD) is fit for the digital environ-ment, given the European Commission’s recent Fitness Check (evaluation). In particular, the UCPD and the Consumer Rights Directive (CRD) have been analysed from an EU-method and critical perspective.
Hidden in-game purchases through virtual currencies have become a wide-spread practice, with children estimated to spend approximately 450 SEK per month on them. The legal status of marketing of virtual currencies and other virtual products remains unclear, leaving several questions unresolved even if the UCPD provides legal protection in certain areas. The directive grants chil-dren a particular protection, in the form of vulnerable consumers, specifically in point 28 of Annex I to the UCPD it prohibits direct exhortations to children in commercial communications. Additionally, Article 7 asserts that any invita-tion to purchase must be clear and include essential information such as the main characteristics of the product and its price. If the price cannot be deter-mined in advance due to the nature of the product, the method of calculating the price must be provided. Furthermore, Article 6.1 of the CRD imposes an obligation on traders to supply specific information to consumers before a contract is included. Children are thus granted a particular strong legal protec-tion in the digital gaming world, when they are offered in-game purchases. Star Stable, rated as PEGI 3, uses a virtual currency called Star Coins, and offers time-limited promotions, such as “double Star Coins weekends”. In the online shop, Star Coins are sold in bundles, with the most expensive dis-played first. Prices for virtual items are not listed in SEK and children can at any given point purchase these items.
The thesis concludes that the above-mentioned marketing practices used by Star Stable violate the prohibition of direct exhortation to children as outlined in point 28 of Annex I of the UCPD. The game's colourful design and the layout of its in-game purchases can be inherently seen as targeting, monetizing and encouraging children’s in-game spending. On the issue of compliance with the price information requirements of Article 7 of the UCPD and Article 6 of the CRD, it is found that the game fails to provide clear information about the actual value of virtual products. Although prices are displayed in Star Coins, the exchange rate remains unclear, potentially leading children to make impulsive purchases without understanding the true cost of the products. As a result, Star Stable breaches the price information requirement stated in Article 7 of the UCPD. Whether Star Stable violates the CRD is a question left unan-swered in the essay, but a matter worth investigating in the future. The analy-sis further reveals that the UCPD has not been appropriately adapted to the digital environment, and that the commissions fitness check fails to address the complexities of transactions involving virtual currencies. As a result, the directive faces significant challenges in ensuring its relevance and applicability in the in-game purchases world. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Gashi, Leandra LU
supervisor
organization
course
LAGF03 20242
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Konsumentskydd, Konsumenträttigheter, virtuella valutor, direktivet om otillbörliga affärsmetoder, köpuppmaningar mot barn, riktad marknadsföring, digitala marknader, EU-rätt, marknadsföring, Spelmarknad, Digitala spel
language
Swedish
id
9179752
date added to LUP
2025-03-20 13:59:50
date last changed
2025-03-20 13:59:50
@misc{9179752,
  abstract     = {{The essay analyses whether the gaming company Star Stable Entertainment AB´s marketing of virtual currencies and other virtual products against chil-dren violates EU consumer law, considering the Swedish Consumers Associ-ation’s complaint against the company. The paper also discusses whether the Unfair Commercial Practice Directive (UCPD) is fit for the digital environ-ment, given the European Commission’s recent Fitness Check (evaluation). In particular, the UCPD and the Consumer Rights Directive (CRD) have been analysed from an EU-method and critical perspective. 
Hidden in-game purchases through virtual currencies have become a wide-spread practice, with children estimated to spend approximately 450 SEK per month on them. The legal status of marketing of virtual currencies and other virtual products remains unclear, leaving several questions unresolved even if the UCPD provides legal protection in certain areas. The directive grants chil-dren a particular protection, in the form of vulnerable consumers, specifically in point 28 of Annex I to the UCPD it prohibits direct exhortations to children in commercial communications. Additionally, Article 7 asserts that any invita-tion to purchase must be clear and include essential information such as the main characteristics of the product and its price. If the price cannot be deter-mined in advance due to the nature of the product, the method of calculating the price must be provided. Furthermore, Article 6.1 of the CRD imposes an obligation on traders to supply specific information to consumers before a contract is included. Children are thus granted a particular strong legal protec-tion in the digital gaming world, when they are offered in-game purchases. Star Stable, rated as PEGI 3, uses a virtual currency called Star Coins, and offers time-limited promotions, such as “double Star Coins weekends”. In the online shop, Star Coins are sold in bundles, with the most expensive dis-played first. Prices for virtual items are not listed in SEK and children can at any given point purchase these items. 
The thesis concludes that the above-mentioned marketing practices used by Star Stable violate the prohibition of direct exhortation to children as outlined in point 28 of Annex I of the UCPD. The game's colourful design and the layout of its in-game purchases can be inherently seen as targeting, monetizing and encouraging children’s in-game spending. On the issue of compliance with the price information requirements of Article 7 of the UCPD and Article 6 of the CRD, it is found that the game fails to provide clear information about the actual value of virtual products. Although prices are displayed in Star Coins, the exchange rate remains unclear, potentially leading children to make impulsive purchases without understanding the true cost of the products. As a result, Star Stable breaches the price information requirement stated in Article 7 of the UCPD. Whether Star Stable violates the CRD is a question left unan-swered in the essay, but a matter worth investigating in the future. The analy-sis further reveals that the UCPD has not been appropriately adapted to the digital environment, and that the commissions fitness check fails to address the complexities of transactions involving virtual currencies. As a result, the directive faces significant challenges in ensuring its relevance and applicability in the in-game purchases world.}},
  author       = {{Gashi, Leandra}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Star Stable: En fälla för barn? En studie kring Star Stables marknadsföring gentemot barn och dess förenlighet med EU:s konsumentskyddslagstiftning}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}