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Online gaming in China: In future, only Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. for young people
Photo: Xu Xiaolin / dpa
The intervention had been announced. At the beginning of August, a state business magazine had already labeled online games "opium" and "electronic drug". Now the government in Beijing has regulated the domestic gaming industry with new rules that have been in effect since September 1st. And the new rules are a tough blow for many young people: From Monday to Thursday, young people under the age of 18 are no longer allowed to play online games at all. One hour of playing time is allowed on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. If you make full use of your personal time limit, you will get a maximum of 3 hours of gaming per week.
Implementing these rules is relatively easy for Beijing. With the big game providers like Tencent or Netease, young people have to log into their user account under their real name and with an ID card if they want to play. Tencent also uses facial recognition technology called "Midnight Control" to prevent teenagers from using their parents' accounts to extend their gaming hours. Game providers who circumvent these access rules or who do not observe them face severe penalties up to and including the withdrawal of their license.
China is the largest video game market in the world.
Beijing justifies the weekly 3-hour limit by stating that the number of adolescents suffering from gambling addiction and requiring treatment in clinics has risen significantly.
The state news agency Xinhua justified the ban as well as increasing the number of children with myopia, behavioral and concentration disorders.
The national media regulator NPPA is responsible for overseeing the gaming provider.
According to the agency, around two-thirds of young people in China regularly play video games, and around 15 percent spend up to two hours a day playing games on their mobile phones.
With games like "Honor of Kings", China's largest gaming provider Tencent has gained around 100 million users.
Tencent's stock had already come under heavy pressure in the past few weeks.
The group agreed to strictly implement the new requirements.
At the same time, Tencent is trying to internationalize its business more strongly - in other words, to offer games in countries where young people are allowed to spend unlimited time on their cell phones or computer screens.
The supervisory authority NPPA also announced that it would significantly tighten controls on game providers from September.
Around 10,000 online games were examined by the authority last year alone.
la / reuters