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Beijing-
Tencent Holdings
Ltd.
TCEHY -2.89%
ends a poker-based online game as the government increases controls over the video game industry in China.
The Shenzhen-based tech giant announced Monday that it had begun eliminating "Everyday Texas Hold" Em, a game of chance based on the poker card game, and would shut down the game server on September 25 . guidelines on culture and tourism, said the company on its official account WeChat.
Tencent said it was going to either pay off the players or convert their virtual currency into the poker game so that it could be used in other games.
The company said in a statement that it was closing the game because of "an adjustment of its activities," and a spokeswoman declined to say. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the General Administration of Press and Publications – which according to analysts will probably be responsible for approving the games after a bureaucratic reshuffle – have not responded to requests for comment. But the Chinese authorities have already cracked down on online gambling, which is illegal in mainland China. Players of Chinese poker games use virtual currency instead of real money to bet and usually go through intermediary services to transfer or cash out their winnings.
The video game industry has been subject to increased scrutiny by regulators. State media in recent years have denounced the violent content and addictive nature of video games.
Tencent, the world's largest video game company in terms of revenue, has encountered a series of regulatory hurdles.
Last month, the company lost more than $ 20 billion in a single day after Chinese regulators said they would limit video games and impose new restrictions on young people as part of a broader plan. to combat vision problems in schoolchildren and adolescents. .
Tencent was also forced to stop sales of "Monster Hunter: World", which had only been launched the week before, when Chinese regulators withdrew the game's operating license. A few days later, the company announced that its second-quarter earnings had dropped compared to the previous year, the first since 2005. The executives said that Tencent had not managed to monetize two of its most popular games. gaming approvals.
Since then, Tencent has proactively strengthened control of its games.
Last week, the company said that it would start checking the identity and age of the players on its "Honor of Kings" video game against a police database to identify "irrational consumption." Of the game by the minors. The company has called the move first for the industry.
On its WeChat account, the company announced that it will extend identity verification to other games in the future.
"Children are the hope of their families, the future of the country," said the company. "Tencent has always considered healthy online access for minors as a matter of utmost importance."
-Xiao Xiao in Beijing contributed to this article.
Write to Shan Li at [email protected]
Released in the print edition of September 11, 2018 under the title "Tencent Shuts Video Game in Beijing Crackdown Continues".
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