Videogame Workers Union Joins Stop Killing Games in Supporting California's Protect Our Games Act

United Videogame Workers, a union affiliated with the Communications Workers of America (UVW-CWA), has officially announced its support for California Assembly Bill 1921, also known as the Protect Our Games Act.

AB 1921 was introduced by Assembly Member Chris Ward of the 78th District, and proposes to add Chapter 6.8 to Division 8 of California's Business and Professions Code.

UVW-CWA has confirmed that its members were directly involved in discussions with Ward's staff during the drafting process.

About the Protect Our Games Act:

The bill has been amended several times since it was first introduced in 2020. The language has been updated in key areas, shifting focus from "server-connected games" to the broader term "digital games," and reframing the core concern around a player's ability to make "ordinary use" of a product they have paid for.

The bill defines "ordinary use" as a purchaser's ability to use the core features of a digital game, consistent with the reasonable expectations of a purchaser based on "how the game was advertised, marketed, or described by the operator at the time of purchase." If passed, the bill's requirements would apply to digital games made available for purchase on or after January 1, 2027.

The bill also draws a clear line around who is actually responsible under the law. A "digital game operator" is defined as any publisher, developer, or other entity that controls whether a purchaser can make ordinary use of a game, including through authentication systems, server access, digital rights management, or required software updates. General-purpose hosting providers, cloud platforms, or marketplaces for the distribution of a digital game that do not control access to the game itself are explicitly excluded from this definition.

So what does AB 1921 actually require? Here is what the amended bill text lays out:

Advance notice requirements (60 days before services end):

• Operators must communicate the following to both current purchasers and prospective buyers, through direct in-game notification and publicly on the operator's official website:

  • The exact date on which services necessary for the ordinary use of the game will cease

  • A full list of services that will no longer be provided by the operator

  • All game features that will no longer be available to the purchaser

  • Any known security risks that may result from the cessation of those services

  • Clear information on how the purchaser can continue to use the game, or obtain a refund

On the day services end, operators must provide purchasers with one or more of the following:

• A version of the digital game that can be used by the purchaser entirely independent of services controlled by the operator

• A patch or update to the purchaser's existing version of the game that enables continued use independent of the operator's services

• A full refund equal to the complete purchase price paid by the purchaser

After services have ended, operators are not allowed to sell, lease, or distribute any version of the game that a buyer can’t use without relying on the operator’s services.

The bill also specifies what it does not cover. The following are explicitly exempt from its requirements:

• Subscription-based services that advertise or offer access to a digital game solely for the duration of the subscription (like Game Pass or PS Plus)

• Any digital game offered to a person at no monetary cost (i.e., free-to-play games)

• Any digital game that is advertised or offered in a way where the seller cannot revoke access after purchase, which includes games made permanently available for offline download to an external storage device at the time of purchase

Publishers who fail to comply with any of these provisions would be exposed to civil action brought in the name of the people of the State of California, prosecuted exclusively by the Attorney General or any district attorney in a court of competent jurisdiction.

UVW-CWA statement on bill:

"For too long, our industry’s so-called leaders have made their worm-brained addiction to short-term thinking everyone else’s problem. If a game succeeds, rich executives take the W. If it fails, workers and players take the L."

"No more. Under this bill, executives must plan for ALL branches on the flow-chart—including the Bad Ending—when hiring, fundraising, and shaping development timelines. They can comply with the law the lazy way (a rainy-day fund for end-of-life refunds) or the hard way (hiring a few more network engineers to work on player-hosted server functionality). But they MUST do one."

"UVW believes this bill is good for players, workers, the industry at large, and the cultural preservation of this medium we all love. Our members are experienced industry professionals who are tired of their hard work disappearing into the void through lack of foresight, and believe that this measure will serve to encourage more sustainable business practices."

"We encourage all Californian gamers to call their reps and demand passage of AB1921, and gamers elsewhere to demand similar legislation."

"For gamers looking to join the fight for a more sustainable and consumer-friendly game industry, check out The Players Alliance and consider getting involved."

Stop Killing Games's involvement:

UVW is not alone in backing AB 1921. Stop Killing Games, the consumer advocacy movement that has spent the past two years pushing for exactly this kind of legislation, threw its support behind the bill last month. That endorsement came shortly after the campaign established an NGO in the United States, a deliberate step toward expanding the movement beyond its European roots.

For those unfamiliar with the broader campaign, Stop Killing Games was launched in April 2024 by content creator Ross Scott, following Ubisoft's decision to shut down the servers for its online racing game The Crew, rendering the product permanently unplayable for everyone who had purchased it. What started as a focused campaign quickly grew into something far larger. The initiative collected over 1.29 million verified signatures across EU member states under the European Citizens' Initiative framework, well above the one million threshold required to trigger formal legislative scrutiny.

That petition has now completed its journey through the EU's submission process, and as per the European Commission's latest update, a formal response is scheduled for June 16, 2026.

Back in the US, AB 1921 now heads toward a broader legislative debate with growing support from both consumer advocates and industry workers. Whether California becomes the first US state to codify protections for digital game buyers remains to be seen, but the coalition forming around this bill suggests the conversation is only getting louder.