BEIJING Reuters - Over 200 Chinese gaming companies have pledged to combat gambling addiction, including through the possible use of facial recognition to identify minors, a state-backed gaming association said on Friday.
The statement, published by the CGIGC Gaming Association, which is affiliated to the national press and publishing regulation National Press and Publication NPPA on its official WeChat account, was signed by 213 companies including Tencent Holdings and NetEase.
China has expressed strong concern over growing video game addiction among its youth and the NPPA in last month published new rules that prohibit below 18 s from playing video games for more than three hours a week. Firms and investors worry that more actions against the industry could be in store.
The companies also pledged to crack down on content that promotes distorting history or discrediting behaviour and will also try to prevent breaches of these rules, such as the use of foreign gaming platforms, CGIGC said.
Tencent introduced a facial recognition function that parents can switch off to prevent children from using adult logins to access the government curfew.