One more step towards complete digital surveillance. To fight against video game addiction among its young citizens, the Chinese government is preparing to set up an identity verification system for anyone wishing to play online. From September, gamers of all ages will have to enter the numbers of their identity document on a still undefined platform, in order to prove that they are using their real name.
Last November, China had already introduced strict measures on the consumption of video games on smartphones by minors. Since then, they can only play for 1.5 hours a day, or 3 hours during school holidays, and must also respect a virtual curfew between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. They are also limited in the monthly amount of micro-transactions that they carry out, inseparable from many successful games, like Fortnite.
A substantial market
Tencent and NetEase, the country's two largest games companies, have gotten a head start on these decisions by introducing their own verification systems. As reported by the South China Morning Post, Chinese fans of the multiplayer fighting game Honor of Kings, developed by Tencent, have their identity confirmed via facial recognition software. All young people under 16 must also ask their parents for permission to be able to enjoy the company's games.
More broadly, the Chinese regime is also seeking to reduce the number of “controversial” video games available on its territory. A few days ago, Apple was forced to remove more than 26,000 games from its catalog of applications, because they had not obtained official authorization from the government to offer micro-transactions. An authorization that Beijing has been asking for since 2016, but which is in fact extremely difficult to obtain, the Chinese administration being particularly severe with regard to foreign games. Estimated at $ 21.2 billion for 2020, the mobile gaming market in China nevertheless continues to arouse envy.
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