Beginning August 1, online game operators in China will be forced to take a series of steps to protect online gamers under the age of 18 from inappropriate content and selling or buying items using virtual currency.
According to the Xinhua News Agency, online games created for minors will have to lose any content that would lead to “imitation of behavior that violates social morals and the law.” The regulations deal with content that is horrifying, cruel or otherwise unwholesome, specifically any portrayals of “pornography, cults, superstitions, gambling and violence.”
The virtual currency ban was said to be made possible by a new rule that online game players must register game accounts using their real name.
Gaming operators were also told to “develop techniques that would limit the gaming time of minors in order to prevent addiction, though without specifying what kinds of techniques and a permissible gaming time.”
Bloomberg reported that shares in Tencent Holdings Ltd., described as China’s largest Internet company in terms of market value, and a “leading provider of virtual currency services,” saw its shares fall as much as 5.3 percent after the new regulations were announced.
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China Moves to Protect Young Online Gamers
June 22, 2010
Poll
Shout box
E. Zachary Knight: Rumor has it that Microsoft is just going to up and ditch its DRM policies before launch. http://www.giantbomb.com/articles/microsoft-to-pull-complete-reversal-on-xbox-one-dr/1100-4673/06/19/2013 - 3:13pm
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E. Zachary Knight: It is the same price as the existing slim, uses all new cables (power and composite) and does not have optical audio. So you have to use HDMI if you want HD video and surround sound.06/19/2013 - 2:12pm
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E. Zachary Knight: Interesting. IGN is recommending that you just skip the new 360 redesign. http://www.ign.com/videos/2013/06/18/unboxing-the-xbox-360-super-slim06/19/2013 - 2:12pm
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Papa Midnight: Rumor - Steam to Allow Game Borrowing06/19/2013 - 1:24pm
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Papa Midnight: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=59560606/19/2013 - 1:24pm
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Andrew Eisen: Hey, that's exactly the point of our latest poll! Which I just noticed I somehow failed to post yesterday. I better fix that.06/19/2013 - 11:34am
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PHX Corp: http://kotaku.com/microsofts-muddled-messaging-shown-off-on-national-te-514280891 Microsoft's Muddled Messaging, Displayed On National Television06/19/2013 - 9:57am
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Imautobot: Maybe there really is something to be said about selling a game at a fair price.06/19/2013 - 8:35am
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MechaTama31: Imautobot: I dunno. Ask my hundreds-strong Steam library, which I have played maybe 10-20% of. Those sales are just too good to pass up... >.>06/19/2013 - 7:38am
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Imautobot: Bought 5 GOG games last night, now I wonder if I'll play them. Why is it so comforting to know we have it, and yet such a challenge to bring ourselves to play it?06/19/2013 - 7:28am
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Andrew Eisen: Okay, fixed. For really reals this time!06/19/2013 - 12:42am
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Sleaker: @AE The actual link to the pay what you want is www.indiegamestand.com not desura. You seem to infer where it's at but never posted a link.06/19/2013 - 12:01am
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Andrew Eisen: LEGO: The Movie! www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPnY2NjSjrg06/18/2013 - 9:39pm
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Zen: http://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20130614/OFFDUTY02/306140030/New-Xbox-sin-against-all-service-members-06/18/2013 - 7:33pm
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Zen: Been out for a few days, but has anyone brought up the possible ban on Xbox One on military bases because of security concerns that it could be a listening device by Commanders?06/18/2013 - 7:33pm
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Andrew Eisen: Sleaker - Fixed.06/18/2013 - 6:34pm
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MechaTama31: CMiner: Another issue is that every camera/webcam combination is going to be pretty different, in terms of the software/hardware exploits available. A homogenous hardware/software combo like a console, in millions of homes, will be a much juicier target.06/18/2013 - 6:31pm
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Sleaker: Vox pay what you want link is busted.06/18/2013 - 6:27pm
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ZippyDSMlee: Mics have to breath put tape over it.06/18/2013 - 6:25pm
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NyuRena: You nailed it James! Yikes..06/18/2013 - 1:56pm
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Comments
Re: China Moves to Protect Young Online Gamers
All this protect the children stuff is mindboggeling. I mean what exactly do children need to be protected from when it comes to video games?
Video games don't sexually molest or violently harass children nor do they cause them to enter an altered or trans like state like alcohol and drugs can do causing them to commit actions which they wouldn't otherwise do in their normal state of mind.
It seems to me to be nothing more then an indirect form of state-based thought and mind control. The nanny-state doesn't like the ideas and messages presented in the games so they want to restrict access to them. Of course this is China which has no Freedom of Speech or Expression so I guess my point is moot.
"No law means no law" - Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black on the First Amendment
Re: China Moves to Protect Young Online Gamers
When I imported Siren from Hong Kong it came with a BIG sticker on it saying "18 and over don't play infront of, sell, lend, hire etc this game to anyone under the age of 18."
Re: China Moves to Protect Young Online Gamers
...specifically any portrayals of “pornography, cults, superstitions, gambling and violence.”
So, for game content for minors, they just banned... everything?
Re: China Moves to Protect Young Online Gamers
Since if you look hard enough you can fidn that in, anything, seems like it.