The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) announced today that The state of California has agreed to reimburse the organization $950,000 in legal fees, when combined with the previous lower court rulings in California that equal a total of $1,327,000 paid to ESA. The legal bill came as a result of the Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association/Entertainment Software Association where the Supreme Court voted 7-2 in June 2011 to reject a 2005 California violent game law.
“Senator Yee and Governor Schwarzenegger wasted more than $1 million in taxpayer funds at a time when Californians could ill afford it,” said Michael D. Gallagher, president and CEO of ESA. “However we feel strongly that some of these funds should be used to improve services for California’s youth.”
The ESA will donate a portion of the proceeds to develop after-school educational programs for low-income communities in Oakland and Sacramento. The program will launch in Spring of 2012, and is designed to tap the passion kids have for playing and making video games and helping develop their skills to be potential workers in the industry.
Gallagher noted that the industry is open to working with law makers in California and across the U.S. to increase knowledge of the ESRB ratings system and various parental controls built into modern game consoles.
