虛擬寶物抽獎法之研究

Abstract

隨著網際網路的發展與智慧型手機的普及，人手一機已成現代社會的常態，遊戲產業從過去之家庭遊戲機、個人電腦等平臺逐漸移往手機上發展，極大的刺激了APP的快速發展，導致用途早已不再侷限於商務或傳遞消息，更是融入了大眾的日常生活之中。而在這樣的科技時代更迭下，在閒暇時刻以智慧型手機下載遊戲APP來玩線上遊戲，已成為了許多人日常消遣的一部分。 遊戲之消費模式亦出現轉變，從一次性付費即可遊玩整套遊戲，到定期付費購買遊玩資格之訂閱制遊戲。在手機遊戲方面，最常出現之模式為遊戲供玩家免費下載，惟須透過「虛擬寶物抽獎」始能獲得遊戲中之角色或道具，而遊戲經營者則藉由販售進行虛擬寶物抽獎所須之「虛擬代幣」盈利。在這種營運模式之下，曾發生遊戲玩家花費钜資仍然無法獲得特定角色或道具之事件，引起社會譁然及政府關注。 本論文將以虛擬寶物抽獎法作為研究主題，進行相關研究撰寫包含虛擬寶物抽獎法會有的法律問題（立法緣由、揭露抽獎機率、付費虛擬寶物抽獎機率檢驗機制、消費者知情權）、線上手遊外國相關法案及司法案例介紹（包含日本、美國、英國、大陸、南韓等）、虛擬寶物抽獎法立法模式分析等面向的撰寫、比對與分析，期盼梳理出虛擬寶物抽獎法涉及的主要法律問題以及提供虛擬寶物抽獎法立法例提供參考。

With the development of the internet and the widespread use of smartphones, having a personal device has become the norm in modern society. The gaming industry, which used to rely on home gaming consoles and personal computers, has gradually shifted towards mobile platforms. This shift has significantly spurred the rapid development of apps, expanding their use beyond business and communication to becoming an integral part of daily life. In this era of technological evolution, downloading gaming apps on smartphones to play online games during leisure time has become a common pastime for many.

The consumption model of games has also changed, transitioning from a one-time payment for complete game access to a subscription-based model for playing rights. In mobile gaming, a prevalent model involves offering games for free download, but players must obtain characters or items through a "virtual item lottery" system. Game operators profit by selling the "virtual tokens" needed for these lotteries. Under this model, there have been instances where players have spent substantial amounts of money without obtaining specific characters or items, leading to public outcry and government scrutiny.

This thesis will focus on the virtual item lottery system as its main research topic, exploring various aspects including legal issues (legislative reasons, disclosure of lottery odds, mechanisms for checking paid virtual item lottery odds, consumer right to information), relevant foreign legislation and judicial cases (including Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, China, South Korea, etc.), and analyses of legislative models for virtual item lotteries. The aim is to clarify the primary legal issues involved in virtual item lotteries and provide legislative examples for reference.