Daily briefing
October 18, 2026
2 stories · about 2 minutes
New York congressman wants the games you buy to be yours, not a license
Rep. Ritchie Torres says he will introduce the Power To The Players Act, which would have the FTC make game purchases real ownership and require an offline mode before servers shut down.
- Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) announced on October 15 that he will introduce the Power To The Players Act, which directs the FTC to write rules on game ownership.
- Buying a game would give you ownership instead of a revocable license, and games with online features would need an offline mode before their servers shut down.
- Torres points to NBA 2K25, which leaves digital stores on October 30 and loses its online servers on December 31, about two years after launch.
- The bill has not been formally introduced yet, its full text is not public, and most proposed bills never reach a vote.
Why it matters: Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York announced the Power To The Players Act, which would direct the FTC to make buying a video game real ownership instead of a revocable license. Games with online features would also need an offline mode before their servers shut down, and buyers could resell what they bought. It is the first federal attempt in the US to settle who owns a game. The bill still has to be formally introduced, and most bills never reach a vote.
Read the full story →Disney plans $180 million for Character.AI's team as the startup goes bankrupt
Court papers show Disney expects to spend about $180 million over three years on the roughly 65 Character.AI workers it hired, and $20 million for a copy of the startup's technology.
- A term sheet filed in Character.AI's Chapter 11 case shows Disney expects to pay about $60 million a year to roughly 65 employees it hired from the startup.
- With a $30 million retention pool on top, Disney estimates the total at about $180 million over three years, paid directly to the workers, not to Character.AI.
- Separately, Disney would pay Character.AI $20 million for a non-exclusive license to its code and nine patents. The app, brand, user data and chats are not included.
- Rival bids are due November 20. If nobody beats Disney, its deal goes ahead and the Character.AI app is expected to shut down, subject to court approval.
Why it matters: Disney expects to spend about $180 million over three years on the roughly 65 Character.AI employees it hired, a term sheet in the startup's bankruptcy case shows. That money goes straight to the workers, while Character.AI itself would get $20 million for a copy of its technology. The app, its brand and its users' chats are not part of the deal. Rival bids are due November 20, and a court must approve any sale.
Read the full story →