Caixin
Caixin Global – Latest China News & Headlines

Home >

TRENDING
XPeng Chairman Says China Poised to Leapfrog to Fully Driverless Cars
China’s Robot Era Valued at Over 10 Billion Yuan
Nexperia Disables China Staff Accounts as Control Dispute Escalates
LATEST
Nexperia Disables China Staff Accounts as Control Dispute Escalates
China Accelerates AI Push as Industry Surpasses 1.2 Trillion Yuan
China’s Robot Era Valued at Over 10 Billion Yuan
XPeng Chairman Says China Poised to Leapfrog to Fully Driverless Cars
Alibaba’s AI Model Chief Resigns
Chinese Tech Firms Dominate MWC Despite Mideast Travel Snags
Galbot Raises $362 Million in Fresh Funding, Eyes Hong Kong IPO
Win in GoPro Dispute Keeps U.S. Market Mostly Open to Chinese Camera-Maker
Noetix Robotics Raises Nearly 1 Billion Yuan After Spring Festival Gala Skit
Geely-Backed Meizu Stops New Phone Development, Turns to AI and Auto Tech
In Profile: How Morris Chang Built TSMC Into a Chipmaking Colossus
Baidu Profit Plunges 42% as AI Push Erodes Core Ad Business
Robotics Startup X Square Secures Fresh Funding Amid Valuation Surge
Fatal Xiaomi EV Crash Raises Questions Over Door-Handle Safety
DJI Challenges U.S. Drone Ban in Federal Appeals Court
China’s AI² Robotics Raises Fresh Funds at Over 10 Billion Yuan Valuation
China’s Tech Giants Wage Lunar New Year Subsidy War to Win AI Users
ByteDance’s Doubao Dominates Spring Festival Gala With 1.9 Billion AI Interactions
At China’s Spring Festival Gala, Robotics Becomes Big Business
Pentagon Retracts Chinese Military Companies List Twice in Two Days

By Bloomberg / Dec 31, 2018 09:50 AM / Business & Tech

China has approved 80 new video game titles in the first batch of licenses granted by the media regulator after the end of a nine-month freeze.

The initial games were mostly local, mobile titles and didn’t include any from industry giants Tencent Holdings Ltd. or Netease Inc. The notice of approvals was posted online by the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television.

China’s gaming industry, which generates more than $30 billion of revenue, has been hammered this year after regulators froze the approval process for new games, preventing companies from making money off hit titles. That threw Tencent into disarray, spurring its first profit drop in at least a decade and wiping about $200 billion off its market value since a January peak.

Tencent gained as much as 1.4 percent in Hong Kong. Although Tencent and Netease weren’t in the initial batch of approvals, both “should benefit as the dust settles,” Karen Chan, an analyst with Jefferies, wrote in a Dec. 30 report.

Tencent and peers from South Korea to Japan have rallied after the official China Securities Journal reported that regulators had reviewed and passed an initial batch of online games. It cited Feng Shixin, deputy director of the Communist Party’s influential propaganda department, telling an industry forum that the government was prepping licenses for green-lit titles.

svnvbmn

The suspension stemmed from Beijing’s campaign to combat gaming addiction and a reshuffle of regulators, casting uncertainty over Tencent’s main business. China’s largest social media and gaming company -- which remains barred from making money off global blockbusters like Fortnite and PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds -- is said to be cutting its marketing budget to tide it over the dry spell.

Tencent distributes its own games as well as titles from external studios. Developers that supply the company include Capcom Co., Nexon Co., Activision Blizzard Inc. and Electronic Arts Inc., according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Related: Charts of the Day: Slowed Growth in Games Market After 10-Month Freeze

Share this article
Open WeChat and scan the QR code