The court ruled that economic risk was not present, and thus, it was not a game of chance.
Austrian court ruled that loot boxes in Electronic Arts' FIFA 23 should not be classified as gambling.
The ruling of the Higher Regional Court of Vienna states that FIFA Ultimate Team packs should not be considered gambling because they were acquired only to be used in the game and not to generate profit. The court assessed the Austrian Gaming Act and decided that economic risk was not present in the case. Thus, this was not a game of chance.
"This is a direction-setting decision from the Higher Regional Court of Vienna and follows similar first-instance decisions from other Austrian courts in recent months," EA said in a statement (via GamesIndustry.biz). The company pointed out that players acquire the packs only for in-game use: "We design our games to bring choice, fairness, value, and fun, and we are pleased with the court's findings that FUT packs are not gambling and that players generally do not acquire them to make a profit, but simply as part of the game."
EA underscored that spending in the game is a player's choice: "This ruling rightly recognizes that spending is always optional, and most players choose not to spend at all."
Earlier, another Austrian court made the opposite decision concerning FIFA Ultimate Team's card packs. In 2022, the Austrian district court of Hermagor considered the game's loot boxes illegal gambling because they allowed players to sell cards on a secondary market. Given that the recent decision was made by a higher court, it might define the future direction of such cases.
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