Written By Adam Wang

The recent settlement $250 million settlement between Fortnite and the FTC has brought attention to protection of children’s privacy and consumer rights. All the new practices brought in by Epic Games as a result of this will have significant implications for any child playing Fortnite.

New payment mechanics result in clarity when purchasing in-game items. In the past, Fortnite would save your payment data by default. Now, saving payment information is specifically presented as a choice to the user, reducing the risk of a child having unrestricted access to their parent’s payment details. Hold-to-purchase is also implemented, which will confirm a player’s intent to buy, making accidental purchases a lot harder.

The updated chargeback policy also is a new tool to tackle accidental purchases. In the past, Epic would disable accounts when a chargeback was initiated, regardless of whether the transaction was accidental or not. This would put pressure on users not to chargeback, due to them wanting to be able to use their account. Fortnite will now only disable accounts when indicators of fraud are present, restoring thousands of accounts that were banned under the previous policy.

The privacy of children has also been discussed in their recent statement. Developers can no longer assume that a teen-rated or mature-rated game won’t be directed to children, as children nowadays have more and more access to content outside of their age rating. To address this, Epic has rolled out “Cabined Accounts,” a new type of Fortnite account that provides an experience that is safe for younger players. Players under 13, or their country’s age of digital consent, will be able to play Fortnite while they wait for parental consent, but in an environment with certain features, such as chat, purchasing, and other social features, disabled.

In conclusion, the settlement between Fortnite and the FTC has changed the way new games are modelled, especially concerning consumer rights. The new payment practices and updated policies provide more clarity and safeguards for players, while the new account system for younger players addresses the issue of children’s privacy.