regulationmobilemonetization

Italy vs. Big Mobile: What the AGCM Probe of Activision Blizzard Means for Mobile Monetization

oonlinegaming

2026-01-31

9 min read

AGCM's probe into Activision Blizzard signals growing regulatory risk for mobile monetization. Read the implications and practical steps for studios and players.

Hook: When “Free-to-Play” Feels Free — but Costs You

If you've ever opened a mobile game and felt nudged, nagged or tricked into spending money, you're not alone — and now regulators in Italy are taking notice. The Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM) opened twin probes in January 2026 into Microsoft-owned Activision Blizzard over the monetization of Diablo Immortal and Call of Duty: Mobile. For players, developers and publishers this isn't just a headline: it signals a turning point in how regulators will treat mobile monetization across Europe.

Quick summary — the bottom line first

What happened: AGCM opened two investigations alleging misleading and aggressive sales and UX practices in Diablo Immortal and Call of Duty: Mobile (Jan 2026).
Main concerns: “Dark pattern” UI that pressures players, confusing virtual-currency bundles, aggressive push notifications and out-of-session prompts and permissive parental defaults.
Why it matters: This probe can result in fines, forced UX changes, transparency mandates, refund obligations and broader industry scrutiny.
What to do: Developers must audit UX, redesign purchase flows, strengthen age/parental controls and clearly map virtual currency to real cost. Players should enable controls, track spend and request refunds when warranted.

The AGCM probe — facts and the regulator’s red flags

On 2026-01-xx the AGCM announced two formal investigations into Activision Blizzard's most-played mobile titles. The regulator framed its concerns around key consumer-protection issues:

"These practices, together with strategies that make it difficult for users to understand the real value of the virtual currency used in the game and the sale of in-game currency in bundles, may influence players as consumers — including minors — leading them to spend significant amounts..."

That sentence encapsulates the AGCM's focus: it isn't just the presence of in-app purchases, it's the way purchases are presented and the pressure mechanisms used to drive spending — especially when children or uninformed consumers are involved.

Specific elements under scrutiny

Deceptive UI / dark patterns: Timers, repeated prompts, obscured pricing and urgency cues that encourage impulsive buy decisions.
Virtual currency opacity: Bundles of in-game currency without clear mapping to real-world cash values, making it hard to understand cost-per-item.
Targeting minors & parental controls: Default settings allegedly allow purchases and long play sessions without adequate age checks or clear parental consent.
Push notifications and out-of-session prompts: Messaging designed to pull players back and push spending — even outside gameplay.

Why Italy’s action matters beyond its borders

Italy’s AGCM is one national regulator, but its action matters across the industry for several reasons:

Precedent in the EU regulatory ecosystem: Italy’s approach will be watched by other EU consumer-protection agencies and could influence coordinated enforcement or national law changes.
Cross-border consumer rules: Many EU rules require consistency for services offered across member states; a decision in Italy can create pressure on publishers to harmonize changes for all EU users.
Investor and market reaction: Enforcement risks change monetization calculus — compliance costs, potential revenue shifts, even impacts to stock valuations for public companies.

Context — the regulatory trend through 2025 into 2026

Late 2025 and early 2026 have seen regulators accelerate scrutiny of digital monetization (not just in games). Authorities are focused on protecting minors, banning manipulative design, and demanding clarity in pricing and contracts. The AGCM probe is part of this wave. For mobile games specifically, regulators have moved from asking "Are loot boxes gambling?" to asking "Are buying flows fair and transparent?"

How Diablo Immortal and Call of Duty: Mobile monetization works — and why it raised flags

Both titles rely on tried-and-true free-to-play mechanics: battle passes, cosmetics, loot crates and currency bundles. The issues highlighted by AGCM are not unique to Activision Blizzard; they are widespread F2P mechanics. But the specifics matter:

Diablo Immortal

Offers cosmetics, progression-accelerating currency and crafting items.
High-value currency bundles (reports note items or bundles up to around $200) can accelerate progression — which can intensify pressure to spend.
Design elements can create FOMO (limited-time items, timers) and obscure the real-money cost of in-game items when priced via currency bundles.

Call of Duty: Mobile

Relies heavily on timed events, crates, bundles and a seasonal battle pass.
Frequent UI prompts and push notifications bring players back during active monetization windows.
Bundles and randomization in crates can obscure unit economics for individual cosmetic items.

Possible outcomes and what they mean for the industry

Regulatory findings can vary — from recommendations and negotiated remedies to fines or formal orders. Here are likely outcomes and their ripple effects:

Mandated transparency: Requirement to show clear real-money prices for each purchase, and to map virtual currency to cash equivalents.
Restrictions on dark patterns: Limits on timed pressure UI, fewer manipulative push notifications, clearer opt-ins for marketing messages.
Enhanced parental controls: Default purchase-blocking for minors or stronger age verification requirements.
Refund obligations: Creation of easier refund channels for inadvertent purchases from minors or where design misled consumers.
Industry-wide compliance costs: Legal, UX, product and testing teams will need to adapt — some short-term revenue may be deferred for long-term trust gains.

Strategic responses for studios and publishers (actionable checklist)

If you ship or operate mobile games, treat the AGCM probe as a wake-up call. Below is a practical roadmap to reduce regulatory risk and improve player trust.

Immediate (0–3 months)

Run a dark-pattern audit: Map all purchase flows, notifications and timers. Identify elements that create urgency or obscure price and mark them for removal or redesign.
Show real-money equivalents: Whenever you show virtual currency bundles, clearly show the equivalent cost in local currency per unit and the price of frequently bought items.
Harden defaults: Set parental controls and purchase blocks as the default for accounts flagged as minors; make consent explicit for marketing/push notifications.
Legal review: Run terms, EULAs and purchase agreements through a consumer-protection lawyer focused on EU law.

Short term (3–9 months)

Redesign “limited-time” mechanics: Reduce manipulative urgency cues and avoid patterned messages that push repeat purchases via fear of missing out.
Introduce spend caps: Allow default daily/weekly/monthly spending caps, easily adjustable by verified adults.
Improve receipts and refund flows: Issue clear receipts showing cash spent and provide simple refund request options, including for purchases by minors.
Age verification: Implement stronger, privacy-preserving age checks where appropriate — see implementations in the edge-first verification playbook.

Ongoing (9+ months)

Design for clarity as a metric: Add transparency KPIs (e.g., % of purchases showing cash price, reduction in “confused” support tickets).
Audit third-party SDKs: Many monetization features are driven by ad and analytics SDKs — ensure partners comply with new standards. Tools and approaches for auditing third-party code and services can be found in resources about tool and SDK observability.
Public transparency reports: Publish annual reports on monetization practices, odds for randomized items and child-protection measures.

What players, parents and consumer advocates should do

Enable parental controls: Use platform-level (iOS/Android) and game-level purchase blocks. Make sure payment methods require authentication.
Track spending: Check store receipts periodically and set bank/card alerts for microtransactions.
Ask for clarity: Request itemized receipts and real-cash equivalents from publishers. If you suspect deceptive practices, file a complaint with your national consumer authority (in Italy that’s AGCM).
Demand odds disclosure: For randomized rewards, demand clear odds and meaningful refunds/compensation when mechanisms are misleading.

Business model shifts you should expect in 2026

Enforcement pressure changes incentives. Expect the following trends to accelerate through 2026:

Clearer pricing over opaque currency bundles: Games will increasingly show per-item cash prices or transparent cost calculators.
Subscriptions & curated passes: Publishers likely lean more into subscriptions (season passes with clear terms) to smooth revenue and reduce reliance on high-pressure single purchases.
Ad monetization diversification: More hybrid models that balance rewarded ads and fair monetization to reduce friction and regulatory exposure.
Higher compliance investment: Legal and UX teams will be core to product development rather than an afterthought.

Risk matrix: enforcement scenarios and business impact

How likely outcomes affect your game:

Informal guidance or voluntary tweaks: Low operational disruption but signals to change practices quickly; similar cases have seen voluntary modifications in late 2025.
Formal order to change UX and policies: Medium to high cost to update flows and documentation; temporary user trust hit but long-term benefits possible.
Fines and refund orders: High immediate financial cost plus reputational damage; may require restructuring of monetization.
Cross-border coordinated enforcement: Potentially industry-wide reworks and harmonized EU standards.

What publishers should say publicly — and what to avoid

When asked about probes, communication matters. Transparency wins trust; deflection loses it.

Do: Acknowledge the investigation, commit to cooperation, outline immediate steps to audit and improve consumer protection.
Don’t: Minimize concerns, attack regulators or users, or promise specific legal outcomes you can't control.

Long-term: a healthier ecosystem or creative squeeze?

Regulation that curbs manipulative monetization can be a win for the industry: clearer pricing builds trust, reduces support friction, and encourages sustainable retention-based designs. But studios reliant on aggressive F2P tactics will face hard choices: innovate better models (subscriptions, cosmetic-only stores with explicit pricing, ads) or accept diminished ARPDAU while they rebuild economies.

Practical takeaways — your 10-point action checklist

Audit purchase flows for dark patterns immediately.
Show cash-equivalent pricing for virtual currency and items.
Set parental controls and purchase authentication as defaults for minors.
Limit urgency nudges and out-of-session push sales messages.
Provide clear itemized receipts and easier refunds.
Implement meaningful spending caps and opt-in high-value purchases.
Audit and certify third-party SDKs for compliance.
Update legal terms and privacy policies for EU consumer law alignment.
Measure transparency KPIs and track player trust metrics.
Communicate transparently with players and regulators if you're under review.

Final thoughts: Italy’s probe is a wake-up call, not the end of F2P

Mobile monetization is at an inflection point. The AGCM's action against Activision Blizzard reflects a broader regulatory push to protect consumers — especially minors — from aggressive or deceptive monetization. For developers and publishers, the path forward is clear: be transparent, be fair, and build monetization that scales with trust, not with coercion.

Players should see this as a win: stronger rules and clearer interfaces mean fewer surprise charges and better control over spending. For the industry, adapting quickly means less risk and more sustainable long-term engagement.

Call to action

Want a ready-made compliance checklist for your mobile game or team? Download our 2026 Mobile Monetization Compliance Kit and sign up for live analysis as the AGCM probe unfolds. Stay informed — and make your monetization strategy regulation-proof.

onlinegaming

Contributor

Senior editor and content strategist. Writing about technology, design, and the future of digital media. Follow along for deep dives into the industry's moving parts.