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Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.-15) announced on October 15, 2026, that he plans to introduce the federal Power To The Players Act. The proposal would tell the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to create rules treating a purchased video game as owned rather than merely licensed, with rights to keep playing, transfer and resell it. It is not law yet: no bill number or statutory text has been published.
What the Power To The Players Act proposes
Torres’s announcement responds to a familiar digital-game problem: a customer pays a retail price, but access can remain conditional on a publisher’s account system, digital storefront, authentication service or multiplayer servers. Under the proposal’s description, buying a game would confer ownership and include four practical rights:
- Own: retain the purchased game rather than hold only a revocable license.
- Play: continue using it after a storefront delists it or a service is retired, subject to the final rules.
- Transfer: move the purchase to another person or account under rules still to be written.
- Resell: sell the purchase, rather than being locked permanently to the original buyer.
For games that include online functionality, the proposal also says an offline mode would have to be available before the supporting servers are shut down. That language addresses preservation of a playable version; it does not promise that every online feature would continue after a shutdown.
Why the issue has become urgent
The announcement uses NBA 2K25 as its example. The standard edition was listed at $69.99 and the All-Star Edition at $99.99, according to Torres’s office. The game was scheduled for digital delisting on October 30, 2026, while its online servers were scheduled to close on December 31, 2026—two years after release. Delisting can stop new purchases, while a server closure can affect people who already paid.
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PC Gamer has also reported that Ubisoft’s The Crew went offline in 2024 and that purchasers could no longer play even its single-player campaign. Those cases illustrate why a nominal “sale” can feel different from ownership of a book, disc or other durable product: the publisher can control the infrastructure required to launch or run the software.
Ownership versus today’s typical digital license
| Question | Common digital-game arrangement | What the proposal seeks |
|---|---|---|
| What you receive | A license governed by platform and publisher terms | Ownership of the purchased game |
| After delisting | Existing access may remain, but the result depends on the platform and title | A right to keep playing the purchase |
| After server shutdown | Play may fail if authentication or required services disappear | An offline mode before supporting servers are retired |
| Transfer or resale | Usually restricted by account terms and technical controls | Rights to transfer and resell, with procedures to be defined |
| Enforcement | Controlled mainly by contracts and platform policies | FTC regulations, if Congress enacts the measure and the agency writes rules |
This is a policy goal, not a description of rights consumers have today. A proposal cannot by itself override an existing platform agreement.
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What would change for players if enacted
Keeping a playable copy
The central change would be a legal obligation to preserve a way to run a purchased game when a publisher ends the commercial service. The announcement specifically connects the offline requirement to the period before server shutdown. It does not explain whether publishers could supply a patch, a standalone installer, a local server or another method.
Moving or selling a game
Transfer and resale could make digital purchases behave more like used physical games. The proposal does not say whether a transfer would be limited to one platform, whether the original buyer would lose access immediately, how family sharing would work, or how fraud and duplicate copies would be prevented. Those mechanics would need to appear in the bill or FTC rules.
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Reducing dependence on accounts and DRM
The announcement identifies authentication and publisher servers as the practical risks, but it does not publish technical requirements for digital-rights management (DRM). It is therefore not yet possible to say whether a particular launcher, account check or copy-protection system would be prohibited.
What the proposal does not establish yet
Several important legal and technical questions remain open because Torres’s office has announced the measure without a bill number or statutory language:
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- Congressional sponsors, committee referral and a legislative schedule have not been confirmed.
- The exact definition of “ownership” is not available.
- The enforcement mechanism beyond directing the FTC to make regulations is unknown.
- The treatment of platform accounts, subscriptions, cloud streaming and games that require a publisher login is unresolved.
- The required scope and quality of an offline mode are unspecified.
- It is unclear whether the rules would apply to games already sold, future purchases, or both.
- No effective date, penalties or private right of action has been announced.
Until an official bill text and subsequent congressional action appear, these points should be treated as undecided rather than promised features.
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What you can do with games you buy now
Check the dependency before purchasing
Read the product page and platform terms for a required account, persistent internet connection, third-party launcher, or online-only design. A physical box is not automatically independent: discs may contain incomplete software, require patches, perform account checks or depend on servers. Verify the specific title and platform.
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- Feel physically responsive feedback to your in-game actions through haptic feedback
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- Chat online through the built-in microphone and connect a headset directly through the 3.5mm jack
- Switch voice capture on and off using the dedicated mute button
- Play on more devices using the USB Type-C cable or Bluetooth to connect easily to Windows PC and Mac computers, Android and iOS mobile phones as well as your PlayStation 5
Prefer an install you can preserve when that matters
PC Gamer identifies DRM-free games sold through GOG as an ownership-friendly option because buyers can back up the game files and use them while compatible hardware remains available. DRM-free does not guarantee that every modern game feature works forever, but it reduces dependence on a particular authentication server.
Back up lawful installers and patches
Where a store permits it, keep the installer, updates, save files and documentation in a personal backup. A backup cannot defeat a title’s technical requirements, but it can protect access if a storefront disappears or a download link is removed.
What happens next
Torres’s October 15 announcement is the start of a legislative effort, not a new consumer rule. The next concrete milestones would be publication of a bill number and text, referral to congressional committees, debate and a vote. If Congress passes a law directing the FTC to regulate, the agency would still need to publish and finalize rules. Until those steps occur, publishers and platforms continue operating under their existing licenses and service policies.
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteThe proposal’s core test is straightforward: paying for a game should leave the buyer with a usable product, not access that can disappear solely because a company removes a listing or turns off a server. Whether the final legislation achieves that will depend on definitions and technical requirements that have not yet been released.
Quick Recap
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