Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/169473 
Year of Publication: 
2017
Series/Report no.: 
28th European Regional Conference of the International Telecommunications Society (ITS): "Competition and Regulation in the Information Age", Passau, Germany, 30th July - 2nd August, 2017
Publisher: 
International Telecommunications Society (ITS), Calgary
Abstract: 
This paper conceptualizes “Gacha”, a lottery mechanism to win virtual items, which was developed in Japan, as game of chance elements in mobile games which is used for monetization in freemium business models. Based on the concept of Gacha, referring to previous studies, this paper also analyzes the difference of mobile game regulation between the West and Japan. Japan has a longer history and more experience in both monetization of mobile games with gambling like elements (Gacha) and its regulation including self-regulation. Specific kinds of Gacha are regulated in Japan, not because of its quasi-gamble mechanism, which is in contrast to previous study perception, but because of its misleading marketing promotion method. The Japanese regulatory approach to handle the game of chance issues is to increase the transparency of probability of winning which gives consumer better chances to consider their total amount of spending on Gacha.
Subjects: 
Free-to-play
freemium
mobile games
behavior
regulation
Gambling
virtual goods
Japan
Europe
Document Type: 
Conference Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.