China’s NetEase plays down impact of youth game rules

Chinese gaming firm NetEase said on Tuesday that less than 1 percent of its revenue comes from minors, a day after Beijing’s new rules banned under-18s from playing online games for more than three hours a week.

US- listed shares of NetEase, which also posted second-quarter results earlier in the day, rose about 5 percent to US$94.08.

The comments came after Beijing published new rules on Monday to curb growing gaming addiction in the mainland.

The new rules place the onus of implementation on the gaming industry and are not laws per se that would punish individuals for infractions.

Young Chinese gamers took to social media to express their outrage at new rules that limit their gaming time, while investors fretted about the long-term impact on the industry. (Reuters)