European Commission to ban 10 manipulative online designs
The draft also includes protection for children in games and fines of up to 6% of global turnover for companies.
The European Commission plans to present the draft Digital Fairness Act on 11 November, reports Euronews, citing a preliminary document. It is intended to replace the current directive on unfair commercial practices with a regulation binding for all EU countries. The adoption of the new rules will require approval from the European Parliament and the member states of the union.
According to the draft, ten methods of user manipulation will be banned under all circumstances. These include complicated subscription cancellations, hidden prices and renewal terms, false notifications of product shortages, pre-selected paid options, and intrusive offers to change decisions.
Separately, the draft plans to ban hidden mandatory fees that appear only at the payment stage and misleading discounts.
Special attention is given to protecting children. In video games for minors, paid loot boxes and pay-to-win mechanics are to be banned. The cost of in-game currencies will have to be indicated in real money, and their use for children will be disabled by default. It can be enabled with parental permission. The ban on advertising based on profiling minors is planned to be extended to all sellers, not just online platforms.
Users will be allowed to disable automatic content playback, intrusive notifications, rewards for continuous streaks of actions, and chatbot features that simulate personal relationships.
A free trial period cannot be automatically converted into a paid subscription without the customer's consent. Companies will also be required to remind users about subscription renewals, provide a separate button for cancellation, and offer the ability to contact support staff.
The new requirements will also apply to AI agents making purchases. Users will be able to determine which transactions require their approval, and systems will have to disclose sponsored offers.
According to the European Commission's estimates, the measures will help prevent consumer financial losses of €88.4 billion between 2025 and 2035. Violations investigated by the European Commission will incur fines of up to 6% of a company's annual global turnover.
The new rules are planned to be applied one year after the regulation comes into force. Germany has already opposed the creation of a separate law, proposing instead to amend existing regulations.
