EU Proposes Digital Fairness Act to Regulate Online Gaming, Social Media, and E-commerce Practices

Image: Loot boxes, influencers, and addictive features face an EU crackdown · Source

The European Union has introduced the Digital Fairness Act to curb manipulative marketing, addictive features like loot boxes, and undisclosed influencer advertising, aiming to protect consumers and promote fair online commerce.

The European Union Commission unveiled the Digital Fairness Act (DFA) in November 2026, targeting exploitative practices in gaming, social media, and e-commerce platforms to create a fairer online experience for consumers. The legislation proposal specifically addresses manipulative marketing tactics, addictive design elements, undisclosed influencer marketing, and unfair pricing strategies.

The DFA aims to ban "dark patterns"—deceptive design techniques that pressure users into unintended decisions, such as false scarcity claims like "almost sold out" notices. One significant measure is requiring platforms to allow users to disable addictive features, including persistent prompts, infinite scrolling, and video autoplay. This extends to artificial intelligence companions and conversational chatbots, recognizing their growing influence.

The Act also targets minors, prohibiting gambling-like elements such as pay-to-win and pay-to-progress mechanics, especially within games containing loot boxes and microtransactions. Influencers must clearly disclose advertising content to prevent exploiting the trust of children. Additionally, the legislation imposes limits on unfair personalized adverts and pricing practices that prey on minors or use sensitive user data.

To enhance transparency and consumer control, the DFA mandates easier cancellation of subscriptions and digital contracts, with timely reminders about automatic renewals and trial expirations. Pricing transparency is emphasized, especially for dynamic pricing models and in-app purchases made with virtual currency. For instance, platforms selling cultural or sports event tickets via virtual queues must display real-time prices, including the highest possible price.

Consumer service provisions include the right to communicate with human representatives and clear policies for AI agents making purchases on behalf of users. The proposed regulations could impact major online ecosystems employing engagement-maximizing algorithms, such as YouTube, TikTok, and Meta’s platforms.

However, some gaming industry groups have criticized the draft, particularly opposing restrictions on virtual currencies and microtransactions for minors, labeling them "unworkable, unjustified and disproportionate."

The Digital Fairness Act remains a proposal undergoing review by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, with measures subject to change before potential enactment. The EU Commission warns that companies violating the future regulations could face fines up to six percent of their global annual revenue.

Michael McGrath, EU Commissioner for Consumer Protection, emphasized that the Act aims to foster competition based on product merit rather than exploitative practices, stating, "We are not making it harder to do business. We are making it harder to do business unfairly." The legislation marks a significant step towards modernizing consumer protections in the evolving digital economy.