Starting September 1st, companies operating in China will be required to limit online gaming to just three hours per week for minors. This was a new rule that was just passed by Chinese regulators. This is a change from a previous restriction started in 2019 that allowed for up to 1.5 hours of game time per day.
According to a report from Bloomberg, those under the age of 18 will only be allowed to game for one hour between 8PM and 9PM on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and on public holidays. Not only will companies be forced to restrict online gaming to these narrow windows of time, but they must also enforce a real-name verification system.
As noted, there have already been some restrictions set in place for those under 18 who want to play games online. In 2018, Tencent implemented age checks in their mobile game, Honor of Kings. They imposed a one hour per day time limit for those up to the age of 12. Children aged 13 to 18 were given a bit more leeway, being able to play up to a maximum of two hours per day.
The new rules that begin in September include some additional requirements:
- All online games should link to a state sponsored anti-addiction system
- Companies cannot provide services to users without real-name registrations
- Regulators will increase checks on how gaming firms carry out restrictions on things like playing time and in-game purchases
- Regulators will work with parents, schools, and members of society to combat youth gaming addiction
At the rate things are going in China, these three hours may very well soon be 0 hours per week.
