China Bans Unsanctioned Video Game Live Streaming
In March, the Chinese government announced plans to expand restrictions on online gaming for minors, including live streaming and social media. At the time, the government was soliciting public feedback on a draft of the proposed change document, but now appears to be taking some crackdowns: Reuters The country’s State Administration of Radio and Television has banned unauthorized video game broadcasts, the report said.
new rule [Google translated] It applies to video games not yet approved for distribution in China, as well as games and eSports competitions from outside China, the report said. In addition to restricting the game content that can be played on Chinese platforms, it also calls on streamers to avoid “traffic-oriented” aesthetics and other “bad” behaviors, and to interact with viewers in a “civilized and healthy” online environment.
The new restrictions are part of China’s ongoing efforts to crack down on perceived gaming and internet addiction among minors, with the first paragraph of the new guidelines making it clear: “Problems such as online live broadcast chaos and teenagers’ addiction to gaming have attracted widespread attention. Socially, There is an urgent need to take effective measures to strictly regulate.”
One of the drivers behind this change is that while video games require official approval to be released in China, unapproved games are often promoted on platforms such as Huya, Douyu and Bilibili. Unsurprisingly, one of them was Elden Ring, which Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad said was a hit with live viewers despite not being licensed for publication.
“Earlier this year, Elden Ring was hugely popular on the Chinese game live-streaming platform, and despite having no license, it accumulated an average daily audience of 17.1 million,” Ahmed said.
Elden Ring is hugely popular on Chinese game live streaming platforms, with a cumulative average daily audience of 17.1 million in the first week. But it’s not approved for sale there (people still find ways to buy it). Elden Ring won’t be able to stream at all if you do exactly the following. https://t.co/roKxkQwatIApril 15, 2022
The new rules come a day after Chinese gaming group Tencent announced it would take measures Block access to unapproved foreign games on its platform. Ironically, both moves come days after Chinese authorities approved new video games for the first time in nearly a year.