On June 4, 2024, the Spanish Government approved the Draft Bill of the Fundamental Law for the protection of minors in digital environments (“Draft Bill”). The Draft Bill aims to safeguard the health, welfare and safety of children and adolescents in Spain. Under this new draft regulation, the rights to privacy, honor and self-image, as well as the protection of their personal data and access to age-appropriate content are particularly relevant. 

The Draft Bill contains relevant news regarding the use of loot boxes (random reward mechanisms in video games and platforms), as for the first time in Spain it expressly prohibits minors from accessing to loot boxes. The Draft Bill defines “loot boxes” as a virtual functionality whose activation is carried out with real money or with a virtual object, such as a code, key, in-game currency, cryptocurrency or other element, acquired directly or indirectly with money; in which the result of such activation is uncertain and consists of obtaining a virtual object that can be exchanged for money or for other virtual objects. 

The Draft Bill also regulates other aspects related with digital environment, such as the obligation for video sharing platforms to establish links to reporting channels, as well as influencers to unequivocally warn when the content they are sharing is potentially harmful to the physical, mental or moral development of minors. Other outstanding aspects of the Draft Bill is related to the educational field, and to the obligation for companies within the technological sector to ensure that the digital devices they manufacture have parental control systems activated and with informative labels on their risks.

The Draft Bill is under discussion and we will update on this blog on the final approval.