In what has already become major news in various gaming media, the State Newspaper and Publication Office of the People's Republic of China announced on August 30 a policy requiring that online gaming services for minors be limited to weekends and holidays, with a limit of one hour per day.
Minors are allowed to play for three hours three days a week.
The State Newspaper and Publication Office has jurisdiction over the media and gaming industries in the People's Republic of China.
Under this policy, minors will be allowed to play online games only on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays from 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., and they will also be required to register their real names.
In Japan, Kagawa Prefecture, a pioneer in this field, enacted the "Kagawa Prefecture Internet Game Addiction Prevention Ordinance" on April 1, 2020, limiting game use to 60 minutes per day and 90 minutes on holidays, which is equivalent to the Chinese regulation.
However, the ordinance has had little impact on the Japanese domestic game industry market because it does not include penalties and is a local government ordinance only.
Impact on Chinese Game Companies
In response, the stock prices of Chinese game companies such as "Tencent Holdings Limited (天訊控股有限公司)" and "NetEase (网易游戏)" have fallen.
On August 31, Tencent's share price was down 3.6% and NetEase's was down 3.4%.
While China's gaming industry has dominated the market in recent years and boasts the world's largest sales, the Chinese authorities have called gaming "spiritual opium" and have imposed strict regulations on the industry.
On the other hand, Shanghai has also announced that, beginning with the new school year in September, classes using materials based on President Xi Jinping's ideology will be introduced as a required subject for elementary, middle, and high school students in the city.
It remains to be seen how the policy of regulating video games will affect the entire global video game industry.
Sorry, this article is only available in Japanese. at the moment.
