China tells Tencent, Netease of need for tighter games oversight

Chinese regulators are imposing more rules for game makers, with instructions to self-censor certain types of content and to cut down on promoting games. — REUTERS

Chinese regulators summoned gaming companies including Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Netease Inc. to discuss further oversight of the industry, prompting a slide in share prices.

The Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China’s Central Committee, the National Press and Publication Administration and two other agencies called the meeting to convey plans to step up supervision and start checks on illegal behavior, according to the state-run Xinhua News Agency.

The government just last week released new regulations for the industry, including limiting the amount of time children can play video games to just three hours a week.