China is going to limit how long players can play video games. The government says to do this with a view to combating myopia, or nearsightedness, in younger players. Earlier, it became apparent that China also applies restrictions to releases of games.
China’s Ministry of Education announced the intentions on Thursday, writes among others The Wall Street Journal . In addition to myopia, the government also worries about the school performance of young people who play a lot. In addition to restrictions on playing time, the government also wants to enforce age regulations more effectively. Technical details on how these measures will be enforced are not there yet.
The measures have a lot of impact because China, with almost 1.4 billion inhabitants, is the most populated country in the world and thus also a large market for games. The Chinese tech giant and game publisher Tencent lost about $ 160 billion worth of value after the statements of the government, which is equal to the total value of Netflix, according to Reuters . For the first time in 13 years, the company is also faced with a decline in profits, for which it is blaming the Chinese measures.
In August it was already known that Monster Hunter: World had been removed from the Chinese market . The same fate threatens PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. Shortly thereafter came the news that the country reportedly suspends the release of all games temporarily.
The measures have a lot of impact because China, with almost 1.4 billion inhabitants, is the most populated country in the world and thus also a large market for games. The Chinese tech giant and game publisher Tencent lost about $ 160 billion worth of value after the statements of the government, which is equal to the total value of Netflix, according to Reuters . For the first time in 13 years, the company is also faced with a decline in profits, for which it is blaming the Chinese measures.
In August it was already known that Monster Hunter: World had been removed from the Chinese market . The same fate threatens PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. Shortly thereafter came the news that the country reportedly suspends the release of all games temporarily.