China has imposed increasingly strict regulations on video gaming targeting the nation's youth. It appears that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region -- whose pro-Beijing Legislative Council (LegCo) members are now unopposed --may follow.
According to the South China Morning Post, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) has suggested imposing limits on gaming time and demanding real-name registration to curb local teenagers’ growing addiction to video games. The party cited a survey of 463 parents it conducted, finding 95 percent wished authorities would implement measures to prevent video game addiction among minors. Furthermore, more than 50 percent reportedly claimed their children played online games for more than three hours a day, while approximately 20 percent said their children played more than five hours every day.
DAB LegCo member Vincent Cheng Wing-shun stated, "Right now, we can only see zero protection from game developers who've adopted a freewheeling attitude over teenagers playing online games." He went on to add, "The developers allow teenagers to play games with obscene or violent content, and make in-game purchases... Authorities should ban games with obscene, bloody and violent content, and forbid in-game purchases that cater to minors."
It should be noted that over the last two years, the pan-democratic camp in Hong Kong has been virtually dissolved due to the national security law that came into effect on June 30, 2020. As a result of the law, LegCo members from various democratic parties were arrested, forced into self-imposed exile or to resigned, as they could no longer pursue their parties ideals or effectively argue against pro-Beijing supporters.
The Communist Party-controlled government in China has spent the last several months cracking down on all forms of entertainment, including video games, television, film. All media will shift to promote "traditional Chinese culture, revolutionary culture and socialist culture," according to the National Radio and Television Administration. It should be noted that this year marks the Chinese Communist Party's centennial.
When it comes to video games, that has meant limiting minors to one hour per day of gaming, from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Game developers and publishers have been instructed to implement measures to enforce these restrictions. Chinese youth have criticized the move heavily online. In addition, Chinese officials started to slow down approvals for online games and told major firms, such as Tencent and NetEase, to place less of a focus on profits and attracting consumers.
Source: SCMP