Max Ma, a 24-year-old engineer, is determined to spend as much time
playing computer games as possible at local Internet cafes with his
friends before November 15, the date when playing games in Net bars
will become illegal, according to a regulation recently released by
China's State Council.
"I'm furious with the new rules, there will be no fun," said
Ma.
The new regulation, which was published last Friday, will not only
affect game players like Ma, but also cafe owners and minors.
The regulation bars traditional computer games - although it will
allow cafe patrons to play online games - prohibits children under
the age of 18 from entering Internet cafes and only allows cafes to
operate from 8 a.m. to midnight.
In
the past, children were not allowed in Internet cafes during school
days, but were allowed during weekends and national holidays.
The new rules are part of the central government's staunch attempts
to improve its administration on Internet cafes following a deadly
fire in Beijing last June that killed 25 people, mainly
students.
Two minors started the blaze at an illegal Internet cafe late at
night on June 16. Students in the cafe were unable to escape as its
owner had locked the doors.
Following the fire, the government launched a nationwide inspection
of Internet cafes and stopped approving licenses for new cafes.
Currently, only about 30 Internet cafes are approved for operation
in Beijing.
Teenagers make up a large portion of the customers at local cafes,
where they spend much of their time playing computer games.
"The new regulation will affect our business, but we can afford
that," said Yang Hua, assistant to the general manager of Shanghai
Eastday Bar Chain Administration Co. Ltd. Eastday Bar runs 238
franchised Internet cafes in Shanghai, about one-fifth of the
city's total.
"Still many people are calling us, wishing to join our chain," said
Yang. "This means the new regulation will draw rational investors
to the industry, while those who want to make quick money will be
driven out."
Not surprisingly, the regulation has drawn some criticism.
"I
disagree with the decision of keeping children away from Internet
cafes, because going to these places is a part of life in the
information era," said Huang Hui, director of the center of
Internet studies at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences.
"Many kids go there because they are not very skillful with
computers and need peer help. Also not every child has a computer
at home," Huang
According to the new regulation, any cafe caught serving minors on
three occasions will lose its operating license.
(eastday.com October 16,
2002)