Thu, 07/17/2008 - 15:39
China will not restrict foreign online game imports - official
Shanghai. July 17. INTERFAX-CHINA - The number of online games imported into China each year will not be capped, a government official told Interfax at an industry forum on July 16.
The Chinese government will not impose import restrictions on games similar to those set for foreign films, Wu Shulin, deputy-director of the General Administration of Press and Publishing (GAPP), said at the 2008 China Digital Entertainment Summit Forum.
China has supported the development of the domestic online game industry in recent years and is confident of its international competitiveness, Wu said.
However, the government will continue to ban online games that contain pornographic images, overly violent content, or gambling.
"Over the past three years, Chinese-developed online games have held a domestic market share of 60 percent," Wu said.
Last year, 126 Chinese companies launched 250 new self-developed online games. Such output represents a significant change on previous years, when Chinese online game companies mainly promoted and developed games imported from Korea and the United States.
GAPP has raised RMB 200 million ($29.29 million) to support domestic online game developers, as well as other original online and print media companies, Wu said.
China only allows around 30 foreign films to enter the country each year in a policy aimed at protecting the domestic film industry. Foreign television channels are also not permitted to be broadcast in the country.
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