China video gaming crackdown: no licence issued in October deals another blow to struggling industry

The absence of new approvals comes after the government issued more than 300 licences between April and September. The world’s largest video gaming market has seen sales plunge amid a slowing economy and tightened restrictions. — SCMP

China issued no new video game licence in October, breaking a string of approvals since June and sending chills through an industry grappling with a market downturn and continuous government scrutiny.

The pause by the National Press and Publication Administration (NPPA), the agency responsible for licensing video games in China, went against the beliefs of many analysts and industry insiders, who thought the approval process had returned to normal after an eight-month licensing freeze ended in April.