Epic Games has agreed to pay $520 million following two different complaints brought against the studio by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). $275 million of that settlement will be paid to the FTC due to its practices in Fortnite violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), and the remaining $245 million will be paid in refunds to players who were potentially confused by misleading in-game payment processes.
The violation of COPPA takes the form of Epic gathering personal information of players under the age of 13 without consent from a parent or guardian. Also allowing players under the age of 13 to engage in text and voice chat while playing Fortnite, again without a parent or guardian giving the go-ahead, has played into Epic violating the act. The $275 million it will pay surpasses the record $170 million fine for similar actions previously held by Google.
The additional $245 million Epic has agreed to pay stems from the second FTC complaint mentioned above. Described as “dark patterns and billing practices” by the FTC, Epic was accused of setting up confusing button configurations to confirm purchases. Players accidentally purchased in-game items while waking it from sleep mode, or even doing so while on a loading screen.
Epic has issued a statement following the reveal that it will pay more than half a billion dollars for its prior Fortnite practices. “No developer creates a game with the intention of ending up here... We accepted this agreement because we want Epic to be at the forefront of consumer protection and provide the best experience for our players.”
Most of the issues which led to Epic receiving such hefty fines have already been rectified. Earlier this month, the studio rolled out its cabined accounts. Settings that will apply to all players under 13 (or anyone below their country's age of digital consent), and have been retroactively applied to anyone in that age group already signed up, that deactivate a number of features that can't be turned back on without a parent or guardian's permission. Cabined accounts have been rolled out across Fall Guys and Rocket League as well as Fortnite.