A new law in California will require digital storefronts to explain to users that they are merely buying a license to a product, not the product itself.

The particulars of digital ownership and licensing have been a key issue in video games while companies and consumers figure out how to navigate the evolving retail landscape.

The new law (AB 2426) requires sellers to make it clear what exactly consumers are buying, you can read a summary of the law below.

Existing law makes it unlawful for any person doing business in California and advertising to consumers in California to make any false or misleading advertising claim. Existing law makes a person who violates specified false advertising provisions liable for a civil penalty, as specified, and provides that a person who violates those false advertising provisions is guilty of a misdemeanor.

This bill would, subject to specified exceptions, additionally prohibit a seller of a digital good from advertising or offering for sale a digital good, as defined, to a purchaser with the terms buy, purchase, or any other term which a reasonable person would understand to confer an unrestricted ownership interest in the digital good, or alongside an option for a time-limited rental, unless the seller receives at the time of each transaction an affirmative acknowledgment from the purchaser, or the seller provides to the consumer before executing each transaction a clear and conspicuous statement, as specified. By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

While this appears to be a step in the right direction, game preservation is still a growing concern as digital-only games can be taken offline for almost any reason.