- Federal judge denies dismissal bid in California Robux gambling lawsuit.
- RBLXWild allegedly let kids wager Robux on casino-style games online.
- Court says Robux are things of value under Penal Code.
A federal judge in California has denied a former Robux gambling operator’s motion to dismiss a class-action lawsuit that alleged he encouraged children to gamble.
Robux is the in-game currency for Roblox, one of the world’s most popular online gaming platforms, with hundreds of millions of users worldwide, many of whom are children.
The platform allows its users to roam a virtual playground of user-created games. It’s free to play, although users can acquire Robux via real-money purchases.
Boris Said was the brains behind RBLXWild, a third-party website that allowed users to gamble Robux via digital coin-flips, blackjack, plinko, and other games. Players could not win money from the site – they could only gamble their Robux to win more of the game currency.
But because RBLXWild was part of Roblox’s Developer Exchange Program (DevEx), it could exchange its Robux for cash. Games on the Roblox platform are user-generated and DevEx is a way of sharing profits with successful developers. DevEX is the only way to exchange Robux for cash and the program is not available to regular players.
‘Minors’ Sue
In August 2023, minors (through their guardians) launched a proposed class-action, naming Roblox, RBLXWild, and other third-party gambling sites.
Their lawsuit alleges the defendants operated illegal gambling involving children, in violation of California criminal gambling laws, and that those crimes, in turn, support civil liability under California’s Unfair Competition Law (UCL).
The defendants are accused of unlawful business practices under the UCL, as well as negligence and unjust enrichment.
Said shut RBLXWild down in response to the lawsuit. In his motion to dismiss, he argued that Robux do not constitute “things of value” because they’re virtual items that cannot be redeemed by players for cash.
It’s a crucial point because the California Penal Code defines illegal gambling as a “controlled game” including any “game of chance” that is unlicensed and played for “any thing of value.”
Do Robux Have ‘Value?’
In denying Said’s motion, US District Judge Vince Chhabria determined that Robux were “things of value” for the purposes of the penal code.
It would be strange to say, at the least, to conclude that RBLXWild was not operating a game involving a thing of value when it was able to convert that ’thing’ – the Robux – to cash.”
RBLXWild was making “up to five figures a day,” Chhabria noted.
However, the judge invited lawmakers to create more clarity to allow game providers to determine for themselves whether their games are legal or not.
“The ambiguity of the phrase ’thing of value’ as used in the California Penal Code is a serious problem because criminal liability hinges on the meaning of this ill-defined phrase,” Chhabria wrote.
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