2023-08-02 11:20:54
Under-18s in China will soon be unable to access the internet at night on their cellphones and their daily connection time will be limited, according to new anti-addiction legislation unveiled on Wednesday.
• Read also: Climate: China denies blocking G20 talks
Under these restrictions, which should come into force on September 2 following a regulatory public consultation, no minor should be able to access the internet via a mobile terminal between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.
In addition, a system will also be introduced to limit the daily time of internet connection on telephones: 16-17 year olds will be entitled to two hours, once morest 40 minutes only for those under eight years old.
These new rules, proposed by the China Cyberspace Administration and which will be implemented through technical means, are among the strictest in the world in this area.
However, parents can deactivate them if they wish.
According to the Chinese Cyberspace Administration, this new regulation will “create a safe and healthy internet environment for minors”, in the wake of other measures taken in recent years to “reduce the addition of minors to the Internet”.
China has issued numerous rules in recent years along these lines.
Since 2021, it has limited the time children can spend playing online each day. It had also frozen new video game approvals for nine months, shaking many companies in the sector – including Chinese giant Tencent.
Wednesday’s announcement caused several Chinese companies in the internet sector to fall on the stock market.
In Hong Kong, Tencent stock (video game, messaging, online payment) lost nearly 3% and Baidu stock (search engine, artificial intelligence) fell 3.75%.
1690977815
#China #minors #deprived #internet #night
