The Daily Populous

Saturday July 2nd, 2022 evening edition

image for Spain to crack down on videogame 'loot boxes' blamed for pathological behaviour

MADRID, June 1 (Reuters) - Spain is set to become the first European country to have a law regulating the use of so-called loot boxes in videogames, aiming to avoid "thoughtless, compulsive or even pathological" consumer behaviour, the government said on Wednesday.

The loot boxes – digital packages of virtual items that can be purchased using real money - are an important source of developers' revenue.

They give players the chance to win desirable or often randomised game-changing equipment, and allow gaming companies a stream of high-margin income.

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Loot boxes have introduced similar features to those of traditional gambling, including the randomness of prizes that have a quantifiable value, and a cost to activate the mechanism.

Younger boys tend to use these purchasing mechanisms the most, it showed.

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. »

School's out forever: Arizona moves "to kill public education" with new universal voucher law

Authored by salon.com

"The Republican universal voucher system is designed to kill public education," tweeted former Arizona House Rep. Diego Rodriguez.

For years, SOS Arizona says, their state has been treated as a "laboratory for predatory national privatizers" of education.

When the Network for Public Education graded states' commitment to public education in a "report card" earlier this year, Arizona came in last. »

NFT sales hit 12-month low after cryptocurrency crash

Authored by theguardian.com
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Non-fungible tokens have been swept up in the cryptocurrency crash as sales reached a 12-month low in June.

Sales of NFTs totalled just over $1bn (£830m) in June, according to the crypto research firm Chainalysis, their worst performance since the same month last year when sales were $648m.

NFT sales reached $40bn last year and the 2022 total has already exceeded that, at more than $42bn, according to Chainalysis. »

What America Should Do If the Iran Nuclear Deal Talks Fail

Authored by foreignaffairs.com

The situation recalls the 1970s, when U.S. President Richard Nixon subcontracted Middle East security to the shah of Iran.

Similarly, the Biden administration is, in effect, handing over the task of containing Iran to Israel.

Although Persian Gulf monarchies fear Iran and have deepened their security ties with Israel, they do not want a war between Iran and Israel. »

Mafia drops ban on homosexuality after discovering mob boss’ son is a fabulous drag queen

Authored by pinknews.co.uk
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The Italian Mafia has opened its doors to gay men for the first time after it emerged that a mob boss’ son is living as a fabulous drag queen.

But the once fiercely homophobic Mafia has now “evolved with society”, an anti-Mafia investigator in the southern region of Calabria has revealed.

He even discovered that the son of one prominent crime boss is living as a drag queen under the name Lady Godiva. »