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Are Loot Boxes in Games a Violation of Gambling Laws?

posted by cmn32480 on Monday January 08 2018, @03:34PM   
from the 1-in-365,214,231-chance-of-getting-the-good-stuff dept.

Bill Dimm writes:

Loot boxes in video games give the player a random item, perhaps a weapon or a skin, typically in exchange for payment. Should they be viewed as a legal sweepstakes or as an illegal lottery? This video examines the legal issues and explains how loot boxes could be structured to avoid running afoul of gambling laws (which vary by state) in the U.S.. The video concludes that many current implementations of loot boxes are really illegal lotteries, and conjectures that major game companies use them anyway because the risk of being prosecuted isn't enough to dissuade them.

Previously: Belgium Moving to Ban "Loot Boxes" Throughout Europe, Hawaii Could Restrict Sale to Minors

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Original Submission

• Libertarianism embraces fact that sociopaths exist Libertarianism embraces fact that sociopaths exist (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 09 2018, @01:18AM (3 children)

  by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 09 2018, @01:18AM (#619799)

  You've got that backwards.

  Only libertarianism embraces the reality that men are not angels, and the self-interest is the root of all motivation—your altruism, too, is selfish. If you ignore this fact, as all non-libertarian philosophies do, then you are doomed to construct a naive form of society.

  Western society's success stems from the libertarian aspects of society; libertarian principles (consciously acknowledged or not) are what have made the West so successful, despite the fact that authoritarians make every effort to conceal or deny this fact.

  Parent

• Re:Libertarianism embraces fact that sociopaths ex Re:Libertarianism embraces fact that sociopaths ex (Score: 3, Informative) by Wootery on Tuesday January 09 2018, @10:00AM (2 children)

  by Wootery (2341) on Tuesday January 09 2018, @10:00AM (#619939)

  Only libertarianism embraces the reality that men are not angels, and the self-interest is the root of all motivation

  What on Earth are you talking about? Modern moderate lefties (myself included) want a hybrid system that combines capitalism with a benevolent welfare state. You seem to want to pretend that this is the same as full-bore communism.

  libertarian principles (consciously acknowledged or not) are what have made the West so successful

  Disagree. Capitalism, maybe, but not libertarianism. Modern Europe is nothing short of anti-libertarian, but compared to most societies it's pretty great.

  Parent

  • A slave in the Big House had it relatively good... A slave in the Big House had it relatively good... (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 09 2018, @11:01PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 09 2018, @11:01PM (#620254)

    ... compared to the ones in the field. However, he was still a slave.

    Parent

    • Re:A slave in the Big House had it relatively good (Score: 2) by Wootery on Wednesday January 10 2018, @10:36AM

      by Wootery (2341) on Wednesday January 10 2018, @10:36AM (#620422)

      Very poetic. What's your point?

      Parent