“All the while, kids have been bullied, threatened, and harassed, including sexually, through Fortnite,” the FTC complaint read.
The settlement is large, even by the FTC’s standards, but nothing close to the $5 billion fine that Meta, formerly known as Facebook, was ordered to pay in 2019.
“Of course, to enable parental controls, parents would first need to know they existed,” the FTC complaint noted. Only in 2019, “long after Epic obtained empirical evidence pointing to large numbers of Fortnite players” under the age of 13, did Epic introduce an age verification system.
“The laws have not changed, but their application has evolved and long-standing industry practices are no longer enough. We accepted this agreement because we want Epic to be at the forefront of consumer protection and provide the best experience for our players,” Epic said in a statement.
