China is going to allow video game consoles into the country for the first time in 13 years. The move is part of its plans to open a new Free Trade Zone in Shanghai, in order to boost its economy, but Microsoft and Sony - makers of the upcoming Xbox One and PlayStation 4 - must be expecting a boost as well.
Surprisingly, the 13-year old band on the sale of video game consoles being lifted throughout the country, not only in the "Free Trade Zone," (though such entertainment media are already available through unofficial channels). The news is credible though, unlike previous reports of social media and some American news websites being blocked.
The announcement came from the Chinese State Council, which is an official state administration body that sets high-level policy for the country, in the form of a document listing rules for the new free trade zone. That document (in Chinese) was translated and laid out by the Hollywood Reporter, which reported the story early in the morning on Friday.
According to HR's parsing, the document says that foreign companies will be allowed to sell video games and consoles "across China," but must set up a joint venture operation within the new Shanghai FTZ as a prerequisite. And consoles, and more importantly, the games, will be subject to the approval or censure of the Ministry of Culture.
The 13-year old video game console ban was enacted in 2000 when government officials and parents became concerned with ideological content and simulations of violence, which are, of course, commonplace now in top-selling titles. However, according to the Hollywood Reporter, such titles - as well as video game consoles like the Xbox and PlayStation - are easy to get at electronics retail stores across Chine, despite the over-a-decade long ban. However, gaming companies have not had the opportunity to market their products under the ban.
This is not the first report of media liberalization by the Chinese government related to the new Shanghai free trade zone this week. Earlier in the week, the South China Morning Post reported that Facebook and Twitter would be accessible in the free trade zone, according to the Atlantic Wire. Some news media outlets like The New York Times were rumored to be allowed in the country, something that has not happened since China began censoring the internet in 2009 - erecting what has since been called the "Great Firewall" of China.
However, those reports seem to have been false - at least for now - as Chinese authorities have since denied that any changes were being made to its internet censorship policy.
China is liberalizing though, if only for economic reasons. The new Shanghai free trade zone is already going to host Microsoft, in a $237 million joint venture with the Chinese internet TV company BesTV New Media, where Microsoft will develop family games for the Chinese market. The new free trade zone is another part of a decades-long liberalization program, started when then-premiere Deng Xiaoping decided to open some limited special economic zones for foreign investment and capitalistic enterprise in the 1980s.