The Federal Trade Commission, Take-Two and Rockstar Games have come to a settlement agreement over the labeling debacle with Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
The gaming companies have agreed to pay fines of $11,000 per violation if they are ever caught “hiding adult content” in their future games.
At issue is the Hot Coffee game within GTA that could be unlocked, essentially turning the M-rated game into an AO, or Adults Only. The FTC was brought in to look at the mislabeling issue.
When Hot Coffee was discovered in 2005, Take-Two and Rockstar agreed to change the ratings and shelled out about $24.5 million in costs associated with returned games.
From C/Net:
Parents have the right to rely on the accuracy of the entertainment rating system," Lydia Parnes, director of the FTC's bureau of consumer protection, said in the Thursday statement. "We allege that Take-Two and Rockstar's actions undermined the industry's own rating system and deceived consumers. This is a matter of serious concern to the (FTC), and if they violate this order, they can be heavily fined."
Ms. Parnes is absolutely right. Parents do have a right to rely on the accuracy of the ratings system. Take-Two and Rockstar, whether their execs were privy to Hot Coffee or not, are responsible for ensuring the games they turn out are representative of those labels. And, thanks to the FTC, they probably will ensure this in the future.
Seems to me this action shows that the United States already has a viable system in place to help parents (the only people who should be doing this) regulate the games their children play. Makes me wonder why so many states are rushing to throw their money down the bottomless pit known as the federal court system. Maybe it’s the lawyers who are getting fat off taxpayer dollars?
Related:
Federal Investigation to Reheat Hot Coffee
Hot Coffee Earns GTA: San Andreas Adult Only Rating
Rockstar Admit Percolating Hot Coffee
id CEO voices concerns over Hot Coffee
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