U.S. Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY) has announced the forthcoming introduction of the “Power To The Players Act,” a landmark piece of federal legislation aimed at securing genuine legal ownership rights for digital video game consumers across the United States.
Under current commercial practices, digital game transactions on major distribution platforms including Steam, the PlayStation Store, Xbox Network, and the Nintendo eShop are legally categorized as revocable software licenses rather than outright property sales. As a result, publishers retain the legal right to terminate access whenever servers are decommissioned or third-party digital licenses expire.
“When you pay for a game, you should own it,” Congressman Torres said in an official statement. “A game that can be taken away the moment a company pulls the plug is not a purchase. It is a rental disguised as a s
The bill directs the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to enact and enforce strict consumer protection rules designed to overhaul digital storefront practices:
- Guaranteed Ownership and Transfer Rights: Secures the legal right for consumers to permanently own, play, and potentially transfer or resell their purchased digital software.
- Mandatory Offline Playability: Requires publishers to provide functional offline modes for software containing online elements, ensuring single-player and local multiplayer components remain playable following official server shutdowns.
- Truth-in-Advertising Regulations: Prohibits digital storefronts from using terms like “buy” or “purchase” on storefront interface buttons if consumer access can be unilaterally revoked.
The bill directly addresses recent industry controversies surrounding abrupt server shutdowns and digital delistings, which routinely strip consumers of paid access. Industry observers highlight titles like annual sports franchises such as NBA 2K25, whose online servers and dependent modes are scheduled for retirement just two years post-launch as primary examples of software vulnerability under current licensing models.
If passed into law, the “Power To The Players Act” would bridge the long-standing regulatory gap between physical media and digital software ownership. Industry analysts view the proposal as a pivotal turning point for digital property rights that could establish new international compliance standards for global game publishers and storefront operators alike.