Chinese gamers--unite!
Monday, July 12, 2010 at 12:06AM 
pic here
Bloomberg Businessweek technology blurb.
China has 400m internet users, with at least a quarter of them avid gamers.
But the government is wary of such activity that it cannot easily control or understand, and so it's trying to limit individual activity, pushing rules to limit perceived "unhealthy" activity.
This was tried in 2005 WRT minors playing online, but kids just got around that by using the IDs of older friends. Now the new rules say gamers must register using their real names.
None of this, of course, helps Chinese companies trying to muscle their way into the global gaming biz, so each time the gov announces such rules, big Chinese gaming companies like Tencent and Perfect World and Shanda Games lose share price.
Beijing can't have it both ways: trying to regulate individuals' activities in the industry while trying to promote local flagships. But it will try, as in so many other spheres of activity, despite the obvious self-limiting outcomes. If you want a creative population, you've got to let them explore and stop playing nanny all the time.
Reader Comments (1)
The time is going to come where China is going to have to make a legit choice: true economic prosperity or total control over the country. Instead of making that choice, they'll try and bastardize it with an attempt at having both, but that'll only slow them down. They're doing good now because of the trade deficit and the cheap labor, but sooner or later, that won't work as well.