Answer given by Vice-President Jourová on behalf of the European Commission
Irrespective of the formal denomination of the agreement for video games, their material terms, such as regarding their duration and dependence on the game provider’s servers, and the associated marketing and advertising practices, are subject to the transparency and fairness requirements in Directives 93/13/EEC[1], 2005/29/EC[2] and 2011/83/EU[3].
Directive 2019/770/EU[4] provides the consumer with remedies in the event of lack of conformity with the contract. Specifically, in the event of termination of a contract for the supply of the video game over a period of time, the provider must reimburse the consumer for the part of the price paid in advance for any remaining period of the contract if it had not been terminated.
EU consumer protection legislation does not set specific requirements as to the duration of the supply of products, including of online video games.
However, Directive 93/13/EEC prohibits unfair terms causing a significant imbalance in the parties’ rights and obligations to the detriment of consumers.
Terms such as those related to the unilateral modification or termination by the trader of a contract of indeterminate duration without reasonable notice may be deemed unfair subject to a case-by-case assessment[5].
Under EU copyright law namely Directive 2009/24[6], Member States are required to ensure that the exceptions which apply to lawful users provided therein are respected by the rightsholder in setting the contractual terms of use of the video game.
However, issues such as the availability of the videogame and reliance on online servers and the possibility that the game may be discontinued in the future do not fall within the scope of EU copyright law.
- [1] Council Directive 93/13/EEC of 5 April 1993 on unfair terms in consumer contracts, OJ L 95, 21.4.1993, p. 29-34.
- [2] Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market and amending Council Directive 84/450/EEC, Directives 97/7/EC, 98/27/EC and 2002/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council, OJ L 149, 11.6.2005, p. 22-39.
- [3] Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on consumer rights, amending Council Directive 93/13/EEC and Directive 1999/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directive 85/577/EEC and Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, OJ L 304, 22.11.2011, p. 64-88.
- [4] Directive (EU) 2019/770 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2019 on certain aspects concerning/ contracts for the supply of digital content and digital services OJ L 136, 22.5.2019, p. 1-27.
- [5] e.g. points 1(g) and 1(j) of the annex to Directive 93/13/EEC.
- [6] Directive 2009/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the legal protection of computer programs, OJ L 111, 5.5.2009, p. 16-22.
Last updated: 12 June 2024