PHILADELPHIA (AP) 鈥 The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is sending out the latest round of refunds to consumers it says were 鈥渢ricked鈥 into purchases they didn鈥檛 want from Fortnite maker Epic Games 鈥 and eligible players who haven't been compensated yet still have time to apply.
In an this week, the FTC said it was distributing more than 969,000 refunds totaling over $126 million to consumers on Wednesday and Thursday. That follows the regulator's first round of payments amounting to more than $72 million, which .
The refunds are that Epic agreed to pay back in 2022 鈥 to address complaints revolving around children鈥檚 privacy and payment methods on its popular Fortnite video game. At the time, the FTC had alleged that the gaming giant used deceptive online design tactics to trick Fortnite players, including children, into making unintended purchases 鈥渂ased on the press of a single button.鈥
Consumers could be charged while doing something as simple as attempting the wake the game from sleep mode, for example, or by pressing a nearby button when trying to preview an item, the agency said. The FTC also accused Epic of blocking some users who disputed the charges from accessing the content they purchased.
Beyond a $275 million fine related to collecting personal information for players under the age of 13, the settlement, which was finalized in 2023, included $245 million in customer refunds. Between December's payments and the refunds sent out this week, about $198 million of that has been sent out 鈥 leaving roughly $47 million left to be distributed.
The latest refunds are being doled out to consumers who filed a valid claim before Feb. 14 鈥 meaning that any claims filed after that date are still under review, .
And the FTC also says it's reopening the claims process. Eligible consumers who have not been compensated yet now have until July 9 to file a claim.
If accepted, the refunds come in the form of checks or PayPal payments. To apply and learn more about the settlement, impacted consumers . People who are eligible for these payouts include Fortnite players who were charged in-game currency for items they didn鈥檛 want or saw their account locked after complaining to a credit card company about wrongful charges between January 2017 and September 2022 鈥 as well as parents whose kids made charges on their credit cards without their knowledge from January 2018 through November 2018.
At the time the settlement was announced in December 2022, Epic it accepted the agreement because it wanted 鈥渢o be at the forefront of consumer protection and provide the best experience for our players.鈥 The Cary, North Carolina-based company added that it was already rolling out changes 鈥渢o ensure our ecosystem meets the expectations of our players and regulators, which we hope will be a helpful guide for others in our industry.鈥
