Italy launches EU-backed probe into Microsoft-owned gaming companies

Oct 8 (Reuters) - Italy's antitrust authority said on Thursday it had launched a probe into several Microsoft-owned video-game makers over their use of virtual currencies. 

• Italy's probe is aimed at Activision Blizzard, among other companies of the Microsoft group, the antitrust authority said in a statement, without naming the others

• Microsoft was not immediately available for comment

• The move is part of a wider European Union-coordinated initiative by the EU's Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network. The network launched actions last month against nine video-game companies, including Riot Games, Ubisoft and Supercell, and had earlier opened a separate action against Microsoft-owned Activision Blizzard

• The aim of the coordinated action is to promote transparency and fairness in the gaming sector, particularly protecting the rights of minors

• The probes focus on the transparency and fairness of in-game virtual currencies used to purchase cosmetic upgrades, weapon enhancements and other digital items, the Italian regulator said

• Purchases are often priced in virtual currencies rather than euros and may involve multiple layers of conversion, making it harder for consumers to understand how much they are spending, the authority said

• The Italian Competition Authority will act as lead authority, working together with peers in Norway and Denmark

• The watchdogs will seek to determine whether the companies may have committed a "widespread infringement" of EU consumer protection rules affecting consumers in at least three EU member states

• The coordinated action complements investigations the Italian regulator opened nationally in December into Microsoft group companies over the popular games "Diablo Immortal" and "Call of Duty Mobile".

(Reporting by Anna Uras; Editing by Giulia Segreti and Xevi Fontdegloria)