China Imposes Curfew on Minors in Gaming Crackdown

The regulations will mean those under 18 cannot play games online between 10pm and 8am, and for only 90 minutes at a time during the daytime.

Advertisement
By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 8 November 2019 16:45 IST

China has imposed a curfew to limit the time spent by children playing games online, in the latest part of a government crackdown on youth gaming addiction.

The regulations will mean those under 18 cannot play games online between 10pm and 8am, and for only ninety minutes at a time during the daytime.

In addition, the guidelines will reduce the amount of money minors can spend online playing games to 200 RMB ($28) per month, rising to 400 RMB for those between 16 and 18 years old.

Advertisement

The new rules will also require all gamers to use a real-name registration and details such a WeChat account, phone number or ID number to sign up.

Advertisement

In the statement published Tuesday, the government also calls for games producers to "modify the game content, functions or rules" to avoid causing addiction in young players.

China is the world's biggest video game market, but the government has been tightening up on the industry amid concerns about health, worsening near-sightedness in children and online addiction.

Advertisement

A hashtag about the new rules was one of the most discussed on China's social media platform Weibo on Thursday with 210 million views.

"This statement just means that teenagers can't play the games, because for most teenagers in China, they need to go to school from 6.30am and end at 10pm," one user complained.

Advertisement

"It's a bit of a one-size-fits-all thing," wrote another, saying a graded rating system of games made more sense.

Another claimed that it was easy to obtain fake ID numbers online and that gamers would just use these to create their accounts.

Last year Beijing announced new controls on the number of games that can be played online, limited new releases, and imposed rules on underage players to reduce their screen time.

Chinese giant Tencent -- the planet's biggest game company -- announced in March it was implementing new curbs on underage video-game playing.

The gaming group had already has launched a real-name identification system for "Honour of Kings" to enforce playtime restrictions on youths.

 

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.

Further reading: China, Video Game, Tencent
Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. OnePlus 15 India Launch Teased; Key Features Revealed Ahead of Launch
  2. Redmi K90 Pro Max Key Features Revealed Ahead of Launch on October 23
  3. OnePlus 15 Battery Capacity, Charging Speed Teased Days Ahead of Launch
  4. Realme GT 8, Realme GT 8 Pro With Ricoh GR Optics Launched: See Price
  5. Scientists May Have Found a Way to Predict Volcano Eruptions
  1. Samsung Galaxy XR Headset Launching Today: Know Price, Features, and Specifications
  2. Smartwatch Breakthrough Brings GPS Accuracy Down to a Few Centimetres
  3. SpaceX Launches 10,000th Starlink Satellite, Sets New Annual Record
  4. Scientists Discover New Seismic Clue to Predict Mount Etna Eruptions
  5. NASA and ESA Trace Mysterious Lunar Flashes to Meteors and Gas Leaks
  6. Valsala Club Is Streaming Now: Know All About the Malayali Comedy-Drama Movie
  7. Ganoshotru OTT Release: Know When and Where to Watch the Bengali Crime-Thriller Online
  8. Mr Shudai OTT Release: Know When and Where to Watch the Punjabi Horror-Comedy
  9. SpaceX May Miss First Crewed Moon Landing as NASA Reopens Artemis Bid
  10. OpenAI Introduces ChatGPT Atlas, an AI-Powered Web Browser With Agentic Capabilities
Gadgets 360 is available in
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2025. All rights reserved.