(Promulgated by Decree No. 44 of the State Council of the People's Republic of China in 2000)

Special Administration Proposal for Video Games Operational Places submitted by the Ministry of Culture, the State Economic and Trade Commission, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Information Industry, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, the General Administration of Customs and the State Administration of Industry and Commerce has been approved by the State Council. Now it is transmitted to you, please implement earnestly.

June 15, 2000

Special Administration Proposal for Video Games Operational Places

Ministry of Culture, State Economic and Trade Commission, Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Information Industry, Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, General Administration of Customs and State Administration of Industry and Commerce

(June 12, 2000)

In recent years, due to excessive video game operational places and deficient local administration, a number of illegal operations seriously hurt the healthy growth of the youth, upset the social security order, becoming a major public hazard, causing fierce reaction from the public, and the situation becomes so serious that it need to be dealt with thoroughly and sternly. To earnestly strengthen the monitoring and administration of video game operational places, crack down on and constraint the harmful phenomenon that appear in the video game operational places, gradually eradicate all the problems in the video game operational places, the following proposals have been put forward:

1. In July, August and September in 2000, the special administration for video game operational places will be carried out throughout China. The tasks will be led by the Ministry of Culture, cooperated with the State Economic and Trade Commission, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Information Industry, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, the General Administration of Customs and the State Administration of Industry and Commerce.

By means of sever treatment, related departments shall clamp down on the video game operational places that have illegal operation and seriously hurt the related regulations, further define the qualifications that the video game operations should have, greatly reduce the number of the places, sternly enhance the monitoring and administration, strictly implement the legal and regulated operations of the video game operational places.

2. As of the promulgation date, the proposal is with immediate effect to stop approving new video game operational places, and prohibit the current places adding or upgrading any type of video game equipment.

3. As for the video game operational places that have the following conditions, including punishment from the Ministry of Culture together with the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Information Industry, the State Administration of Industry and Commerce, the State Administration of Industry and Commerce should revoke their licenses or clamp down on them. As for those who commit crimes, their criminal responsibilities shall be tracked:

(1)   Without licenses or incomplete licenses;

(2)   Within 200 meters around primary and secondary schools;

(3) Receive youth under 18 years old in days other than state-stipulated holidays and vocations;

(4) Violate the state-stipulated fire protection regulations;

(5) Subcontract the video game operational places to others;

(6) By any name of Computer House, Cyber Bar or Network Café, etc. to engage in profitable video games activities; 

(7) Establish any video game machines or electro circuit board with gambling functions or by means of returning coins, steel balls, lottery, screen billiard-maker and other lottery means;

(8) The games in the video game machines contain any information that is against the basic principles of constitutions, harms the unity of the nation or the integrity of the sovereignty or territory, harms the safety and interest of the state, stability of the society, breaches the national unity, instigates national split, infracts the customs of minority, propagates obscenity, eroticism, superstition or violence to harm the mental and physical health of consumers, upsets the social morality, or slanders or humiliate the others.

(9) With other illegal operational activities or operations that seriously hurt the related regulations;

4. Related authorities shall further define the qualifications that the video game operational places should have, enhance the requirements to the places, environment and management, and strictly observe the related regulations to re-examine and register the video game operational places.

Licenses will be granted by the industry and commerce administration authorities to those qualified places re-examined by local county-above-level governmental culture and public security authorities; those unqualified should be suspended, or shut down without delay, the industry and commerce administration authorities should suspend or revoke their licenses.

The operators with licenses suspended or revoked due to illegal operation or infringement of the related regulations should not be engaged in video game activities.

5. To those re-examined and registered video game operational places, the start time should not earlier than 8 am, later than 12pm, and hanging highlighted icon at noticeable place to indicate that persons under 18 years old should be restricted and the tablet of the its name. As for those who violate above-mentioned regulations, the culture departments should order them to correct; as for those who refuse to correct, the culture departments should report to the industry and commerce departments to implement sanction to revoking license in line with related regulations.

6. As of the date of promulgation, the proposal is with immediate effect that all activities concerning production and sales of video game equipment and its parts or accessories geared to the domestic market shall stop without any delay. Any enterprise or individual should not be engaged in any production or sale activities of video game equipment and its parts or accessories geared to the domestic market. Once it is found, the economic and trade cooperation departments and information industry departments should deal with in line with related regulations together with industry and commerce departments.

Except processing trade, any other trade means concerning import video game equipments and its parts or accessories (Custom Commodity Code 95041000, 95043010, 95049010) should be strictly restricted. The processing trade of video game equipment and its parts or accessories should be listed in the restricted category, and implement processing trade deposit account system. The foreign trade authorities should employ strict examination, approval and management, the customs should implement close monitoring to make sure the products should only be sold back to abroad; to those products that cannot be exported within stipulated period should be taken over or to be destroyed by the related corporations under the supervision of the customs authorities in line with the related regulations. The local customs administrations should increase the strength to examine, and carry out focal examination and control, sternly crack down on the illegal activities of smuggling video game equipment and its parts or accessories by means of false reports or concealing.

7. The authorities at various level of culture, economic and trade, public security, information industry, foreign economic and trade cooperation, customs and industry and commerce should unify thoughts, enhance understanding, further make clear their own responsibilities, closely cooperate with each other under the leadership of local party committees and governments, and sternly and earnestly implement the special administration and daily supervision and management tasks.

The culture departments should fully exert the role of super intendancy to carry out daily supervision and management of the operation of video game places, study and solve the problems that appear in the video game operational places in time. Together with the public security and industry and commerce administration authorities and related departments, the culture department should do well in the re-examination and registration of the video game operational places, investigate and deal with illegal operations. The economic and trade departments and information industry departments should control the production and sales of the video game equipment and its parts or accessories, deal with and crack down on the illegal producers and distributors together with industry and commerce departments. The information industry departments should sternly deal with and clamp down on the video games in computer and network operational places (i.e. Computer House, Network Bar or Network Café). The public security departments should strengthen the public security management and regular fire protection examination in the video game operational places, eliminate any potential hazards, sternly crack down on illegal activities and criminals such as gambling, obscenity, eroticism and blazoning forth violence. The foreign trade and economic cooperation departments should earnestly carry out the tasks of examination and approval and management of the processing trade of video game equipment and its parts or accessories; manage well the export and sale-back of the video game equipment and its parts or accessories produced in the processing trade, cooperate with the customs administrations to crack down on the smuggling of video game equipment and its parts or accessories. The customs administrations should enhance the supervision and control of the import and export of video game equipment and its parts or accessories. The industry and commerce departments should cooperate with the culture and public security departments to undertake the tasks of re-examination and registration of video game operational places, suspend or revoke the licenses of those unqualified; revoke the licenses of those video games operational places that have illegal operations or seriously upset the related regulations, sternly clamp down on the unlicensed and confiscate their illegal incomes and the equipment. The related authorities shall revoke the licenses of those manufacturers and distributors that target home markets to produce and sell video game equipment and its parts or accessories in line with related regulations.

8. The local governments should fully exert the roles of news media in the special administration of video game operational places; earnestly carry out the propaganda and public opinion guidance. Through publicizing report telephone to establish necessary praising and rewarding system and so on, they shall widely mobilize the masses to join the campaign, form an excellent trend of joint rejection, and crack down on the illegal operations of video game places.

9. Local governments at various levels should carry through the important thought of Three Represents of Comrade Jiang Zemin, with the responsible spirit to the Party and the people, fully understand the significance of the special administrations to the safeguard the mental and physical health of the teenage, prompt the socialism spirit civilization construction, safeguard the basic interest of the people, put the special administration on agenda, stick to the principle that everybody shoulder one's own responsibilities, sternly enhance leadership, coordinate with the related departments, organize special power to sternly carry out the tasks, and properly deal with the problems that arise from the suspension of video game equipment production and sales to achieve expected results.