Rep. Ritchie Torres Wants Gamers to Own the Games They Buy, Announces Power To The Players Act

What happened

Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY) has announced plans to introduce the "Power To The Players Act," a federal bill that would direct the FTC to write rules making a game purchase actual ownership rather than a revocable license. The bill hasn't been formally introduced yet, so there's no bill text, and Torres hasn't confirmed any cosponsors.

The game sold for $69.99, or $99.99 for the All-Star Edition, and it leaves digital storefronts on October 30, with online servers shutting down at the end of the year, roughly two years after launch. Games that rely on online servers would also need to offer an offline mode before those servers are switched off, and players would keep the right to transfer the games they buy.

Torres pointed to NBA 2K25 as the example. Here's how Torres put it: When you pay for a game, you should own it.