Game industry hopes for deregulation

The Korean game industry is likely to grow on the back of political support from the new government that will be led by President Moon Jae-in.

Moon had repeatedly pledged to foster the game industry as the nation’s new growth engine throughout his presidential election campaign. Expectations are high that Moon will lift regulations on the industry that had been set by previous administrations under former Presidents Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye.

Moon pointed out the negative views on games and ill-placed regulations have forced Korea’s game industry to lose its place on the global stage.

“There was a time when Korea was the world’s best in the game and e-sports industry,” Moon said at a forum in Seoul, April 14. “But multiple regulations have expanded negative views on games. While we remain stagnant, other countries such as China have surpassed us.”

Moon has also stressed the game industry will prosper through deregulation.

“In the e-sports sector, Korea came to have world-class players through diverse support measures,” he said. “I believe that the game industry will become a national growth engine once again through de-regulation.”

The game industry has faced multiple regulations during the previous two administrations. One of them called the “Online Game Shutdown Law.” Introduced in November 2011, this law forbid children younger than 16 to play online games between midnight and 6 a.m.

Amid concerns of parents who worried about children’s excessive use of games, the administrations came up with policies on assumptions that excessive game play is as harmful as drug addiction.

The Korea Association of Game Industry and Korean game businesses have opposed such negative views on games and the resultant multi-layer regulations. Moon seems to sympathize with them.

“The game industry here is entangled with double or triple regulations,” Moon said.

“All these restrictions should be changed into ex-post regulations. Deregulating the game industry will benefit the growth of the Korean economy.”

According to K-Games, Moon and the Democratic Party of Korea have promised to foster not just the game industry but also the content industry as a whole.

To this end, Moon and the party will support smaller content creators while cramping down the collusion and monopoly of large enterprises.