- China has limited the minor online gamers from playing on weekdays to just three hours on weekends.
- The time slot is fixed for only an hour of play time between 8 pm and 9 pm on Friday, weekends and public holidays
- The government opted to execute the decision despite the fact that gamers under the age of 16 accounted for only 2.6 percent of gross gaming receipts in China.
China has barred online gamers under the age of 18 from playing on weekdays and limited their play to just three hours most weekends, marking a significant escalation of restrictions on the country’s massive gaming industry, reports CNN.
The guidelines were released “at the beginning of the new [school] semester, putting specific requirements for preventing online game addiction and protecting minors’ healthy growth,” according to the NPPA.
An Escalating Crackdown
Investors reacted quickly, NetEase (NTES) fell 3.4 percent. Tencent (TCEHY) saw a similar loss in Hong Kong before recovering 1.6 percent.
China has recently embarked on a huge crackdown on private enterprise, engulfing some of the country’s most powerful actors. Initially, it looked that the significant target of regulators was the burgeoning IT sector, but this has since expanded to include other businesses, such as private education.
The New Curbs
“Many parents said that teenagers’ addiction to online games seriously affected their studies, and physical and mental health, leading to a series of social problems, making many parents suffer,” said a spokesperson for the NPPA.
The Chinese government instituted a registration system that obliged anyone who played computer games to do so under their real names, allowing businesses to track them down. The NPPA stated this week that “online game firms shall not provide game services in any manner… to users who have not registered or checked in with their true names.”
Protection of Minors
Tencent has previously stated that the revenue generated by minors playing games is insignificant. According to the company’s most recent results presentation, players under the age of 16 accounted for only 2.6 percent of its gross gaming receipts in China. “There will be a lot of new regulations coming,” said Martin Lau, the company’s president at the time. “But we are very confident that we can be compliant.”
The Chinese software firm made news earlier when it announced limits on how much time children could spend playing its online games, including the famous “Honor of Kings.” The new rules prompted outcry on Chinese social media, where many users complained that they were too strict.
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Source: CNN
