Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to prevent underage access to gambling via loot boxes, skin betting and other third party markets linked to video games.

The Government is committed to ensuring games are enjoyed safely and responsibly by everyone, including children.

Prizes that can be won via loot boxes do not have a monetary value, cannot be cashed-out, and are of value only within the context of the game. They are therefore not legally classified as gambling. However, where products do amount to unlicensed gambling, such as unlicensed skin betting, the Gambling Commission has shown that it will take swift enforcement action. There are currently no licensed gambling operators which offer skin betting.

In July 2023 the video game industry published new loot box principles to improve protections for players. Following a 12-month implementation period, the government commissioned independent academic research to assess the effectiveness of this guidance. We have engaged relevant government departments and regulators to consider the research. We will publish the report and set out our next steps in the near future..