Game Open-marketThe Challenge of New Mobile

Applications

2010. 3. 11.

Changjun

Jeon

(CJ)

Rating Policy Team, KGRB

cjeon@grb.or.kr

The Challenge of Game Open-market

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System of game rating in Korea

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Result of ratingㅁIntroduction

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Definition,

「Game Business Promotion Act, Korea, 2006」

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Object of game rating

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Status of open-market games in Korea

ㅁEnvironmentof Regulation

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Growth of Apple’s ‘Appstore’

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Reverse discrimination

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Private vs. corporate, local vs. foreign

ㅁProblem

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Revision and amendment of law

- Consideration and TaskㅁFuture Plan

Content

The Challenge of Game Open-market System of Korea

ㅁGame rating system of Korea-

Government-led, deliberating and reviewing the content of game before sold in market

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From the past, the rating system of game comes from that of movie and music.

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Game Rating Board, Korea was established on October 30th 2006

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We deals ‘PC&On-line’, ‘Arcade’, ‘Console’, ‘Mobile’

and ‘etc (includes open-market)’

ㅁLabel of age and content description

The Challenge of Game Open-market Practice

ㅁState of Rating

ㅁProblem of open-market games-

Mainly submitted of the application by private developer, the figure is sluggish

*

Tatal

application for rating : 248 cases

(~March 5, ’10)

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Only for ‘All age’

rate, not for ’12 over’, ’15 over’

or ’18 over)

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Big difference of policy and standard between platform holder and mobile carrier

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Specific cases

*

’game in SNS’, ‘go-stop’

and ‘casino’

would be rated higer

than other countries

- PC/On-line MobileVideo

ConsoleArcade Sum

Year of 2007 1,678 921 489 193 3,281

2008 1,383 731 579 959 3,652

2009 1,519 588 575 1,217 3,899

The Challenge of Game Open-market Law Environment

Article. 2 (definition)

1. “Game is a kind of computer program or equipment for entertainment and amusement for the purpose of making good use of spare time, education or sport effect. However, the list below will be excluded.

a. Casino and gambling

b. Object of tourism industry regulation, 「Tourism Industry Act, Korea」

Article. 3

c. Something/product mixed with game and non-game announced by the Secretary.

ㅁ「Game Business Promotion Act, Korea, 2006」

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Full-amendment of 「Game Business Promotion Act」

submitted

(Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Korea, Nov. 28, ’08. National Assembly)

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Separation of ‘game’

and ‘game have to be rated’, adoption of self-rating for test game

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Partial amendment of 「

Game Business Promotion Act

」

(Mr. Han, the member of the National Assembly, May 26, ’08.)

ㅁRevision of the Law

The Challenge of Game Open-market Definition

ㅁWhat’s Game? (by Korean law)-

A kind of computer program, equipment or machine for the purpose

of entertainment, amusement, enjoyment and making good use of spare time.

1. Exist of pre-defined certain rule

2. Result effected by the user’s operation based on one’s experience and decision

3. Exist of (end or on-going) outgrowth like point, money, character and item, etc

4. Verification of intention of the service for Korean users.

a. Localization in Korean laguage

b. Payment method (gift card, mobile payment or credit card especially for Korea user.

c. Customer service for local user (e-mail reply or GM speaks in Korean)

ㅁGame have to be rated

(guide-line of KGRB)

* Is it ‘game’

in the category of ‘Entertainment’

of Apple or ‘Fun’

of SKT?

*The location of game server is no more important variable for judging object.

The Challenge of Game Open-market Status of open- market

ㅁTable of differences among the platform of game

구분 On-line / Mobile Arcade Open-market

Productionand Manufacture

Programmer or developer

*Usually a corporateSame as the left

Programmer or developer

*Usually a private

Distributionand Publishing

Distributor, Publisher or Importer

*Usually a corporateArcade game center

Open-market platformer

*Phone producer or wireless operator

PayingFlat rate,

meter rate(item), or free based on ad.

meter rate(times of game)

Free or meter rate (per download)

Principal Agent

Developer(private) orcorporate or

distributor(publisher)*

In case of ‘Channeling’, no need to be rated.

Developer(private), corporate or

Distributor(seller)*

In case of ‘Importing’, usually a corporate

Developer(private) or open-market

platformer

The Challenge of Game Open-market Advent of Apple’s Appstore

ㅁGrowth of Apple’s ‘Appstore’-

In early stage, news scripting of PDA(like

iSilo),

Podcast

of iPod.

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Expansion of user experience with ‘iPod

Touch’

player

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Territory-broken of mobile carrier with iPhone’s

Appstore

download

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So called, ‘legend’

of private developer with idea and skill

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Possibility of global digital content market (local tax problem)

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Comparative advantage in mobile content market

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Apple has her own rating standard and suggest it for developer and user

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ESRB says Appstore’s

game has to be rated (potential risk of lawsuit by parents exist)

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In Korea, Apple banned the ‘Game’

category for the Korean user

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Developer (private or company) registered their game in ‘Entertainment’

category.

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Part of content in Appstore

have potential problem of nudity and porno (zips, PUFF)

ㅁRating of Appstore

games

The Challenge of Game Open-market Open-market in Korea

ㅁDistinct of Korean market-

Market of mobile voice and connection with big-3 telecom company(KT, SKT, LGT)

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Strong control of youth protection and self-regulating of mobile content charge

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Mobile carriers in Korea got their license and heavily controlled by government

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A point of difference among (ESRB/PGGI/CERO -

KGRB/USK/OFLC -

China)

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Gambling issue (money exchager

of game money and cyber item to real money)

*Mobile side *Online side *Appliance side *TV STB side

The Challenge of Game Open-market Apple’s Case

ㅁCase of ‘Touch GoStop

Pro’-

The most famous gambling game in Korea, ‘Gostop’

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Many on-line and mobile game manufacturer successfully do business for 10 years

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In case of iPhone’s

Appstore, Apple banned the game category for Korean users

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Famous game company, ‘DreamWiz’

made a Gostop

game for iPhone

version

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Got their rate from KGRB and Registered in ‘Ent’

category not in ‘Game’

category

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In Korea, casino and gamble games will be rated as ’18 over’

by KGRB

*

’Sea Story’

case (2006), ‘On-line casino and money exchanger’

case (2007)

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By Apple’s suggestion, ‘Frequent/Intense simulated gambling’

could be ’12 +’

rate

ㅁDifferent standard of game rating between KGRB and Apple

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Discord is OK, natual

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More and more information (age suggestion, content formation and

even warning)

ㅁMatters

The Challenge of Game Open-market Apple’s Case

ㅁIntroduction screen-shot (before buying & downloading)

The Challenge of Game Open-market Apple’s Case

ㅁStartup screen-shot (running in user’s iPhone)

The Challenge of Game Open-market Problem and Task

ㅁ

Problem-

Gap between old law and developing technology

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Impact of value and system of each countries

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Possibility of Jurisdictional dispute

* Broadcasting and Communication Committee of Korea –

‘Google’s YouTube

* When iPhone

was released in Korea, ‘WIPI’

, ‘Location service registration’

matters

(WIPI, Wireless Internet Platform for Interoperability specially used in Korea)

* Web-based game rating issue

-

‘Tribal War’

by Innogames

of Germany was banned

* Taxation and unfairness problem (tax of labor, production and consumtion)

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Revision of Korean Law

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Self-rating will be imported from the stage of ‘TEST’

games and ‘for All age’

rate

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Need of Global standard of Game Rate and Possibility of practical field test

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Not only for a company or a user, a country, it’s whole world’s problem to be solved

ㅁConsideration

Q & AChangjun

Jeon

(CJ)

Rating Policy Team, KGRB