Committee hears testimony on bill to regulate online gaming targeted at minors

Sponsors told the House Judiciary Committee HB 11‑48 would treat online gaming aimed at children like a social‑media environment: requiring safer defaults for minors, restricting messaging between minors and unknown adults, prohibiting design features that promote compulsive use and requiring price transparency and a 5% fee on add‑on transactions to fund youth programs.

Child‑safety advocates, disability groups and after‑school providers testified in support, saying the bill would curb exploitative microtransactions and protect young users. Industry witnesses — including the Entertainment Software Association and TechNet — opposed the bill, raising First Amendment concerns, technical hurdles for age‑assurance and vagueness in the bill’s 'compulsive use' standard. They also warned that enforcement could burden small providers and federated services.

Sponsors and supporters said they had consulted with a range of stakeholders and planned further drafting work to address technical and constitutional questions before the bill advances. The committee laid the bill over for later action to allow additional stakeholder engagement and possible changes.

Why it matters: The proposal targets a fast‑growing area of digital life for children — online gaming platforms with social features — and seeks to extend data‑privacy, safety‑by‑design and consumer‑protection tools beyond traditional social media.