UK government rejects calls to prohibit disabling of live service games

The UK government has rejected calls to strengthen regulations protecting consumers against the closure of live service games.

An online petition seeking to “prohibit publishers irrevocably disabling video games they have already sold” without giving consumers the option to retain or repair them recently gained 10,000 signatures, which is the amount required to receive an official response from the UK government.

While it acknowledged the concerns expressed in the petition and said it would continue to monitor the situation, the government essentially suggested existing regulations offer sufficient consumer protection.

“We are aware of issues relating to the life-span of digital content, including video games, and we appreciate the concerns of players of some games that have been discontinued,” reads the response from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), which was issued on February 3.

“We have no plans to amend existing consumer law on digital obsolescence, but we will monitor this issue and consider the relevant work of the Competition and Market Authority (CMA) on consumer rights and consumer detriment.”

The response outlined a number of protections offered to buyers by the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (CRA) and Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs), which contain regulations sellers must comply with.

“However, there is no requirement in UK law for software companies to support older versions of their products,” the DCMS said. “Decision-making is for those companies, taking account of commercial and regulatory factors and complying with existing consumer law. There may be occasions where companies make decisions based on the high running costs of maintaining older servers for games with declining user bases.

“The CRA gives consumers important rights when they make a contract with a trader for the supply of digital content, requiring it to be of satisfactory quality, fit for a particular purpose and as described by the seller. It may be difficult and expensive for businesses to maintain support for old software, particularly if it needs to interact with new technologies.”

Ubisoft delisted The Crew in late 2023 before taking it offline last April, making it unplayable. In a statement issued to VGC at the time, it said that “after almost a decade of support” it was necessary to disable the online-only game “due to upcoming server infrastructure and licensing constraints”.

Last September, Ubisoft acknowledged consumer complaints over its handling of The Crew, and announced plans to launch offline modes for The Crew 2 and The Crew Motorfest.

That same month, just two weeks after Concord‘s release, Sony announced plans to take the live service shooter offline, pull the game from sale and offer refunds to all owners.

And last week, Warner Bros. confirmed that the fifth season of MultiVersus will be its last. Beginning on May 30, the game will go offline and will be delisted from online marketplaces. However, it will remain playable offline.