Laura Parker from Gamespot continues to investigate who in government is in support for R18+.  To learn more about the Minor Parties stance, click here

CNMRE’s goal in preparing this submission was to introduce a distinctive position that they believe enhances the debate and offers a lens through which to see the efficacy of an R18+ in contemporary Australian society.

As an academic research centre, The Centre for New Media Research at Bond University has engaged in public policy matters with respect to classification since 2001. Their engagement has been data-driven and their contribution to empirical evidence is cited in the Discussion Paper: Should the Australian National Classification Scheme include an R 18+ classification category for computer games?.  

CNMRE’s research record includes A Review of the Classification Guidelines for Films and Computer Games: Assessment of Public Submissions on the Discussion Paper and Draft Revised Guidelines for the Office of Film and Literature Classification in 2001, Sources of News and Current Affairs for the (then) Australian Broadcasting Authority (2001), A Comparative Analysis of Classification Schemes in 22 Nations (2002) for the (then) OFLC, Living Diversity (2002) and Connecting Diversity for the Special Broadcasting Service, A Review of the Children’s Television Standards (2008) for the Australian Communications and Media Authority, and most prominently, a series of national empirical studies on computer game demographics and attitudes for the Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia (now the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association), GamePlay Australia (2005), Interactive Australia 2007, Interactive Australia 2009.  The Centre also publishes research independent of government and industry policy matters including research on computer game history, narrative, form and style.

The thesis they advance is simple: The introduction of an R18+ classification for computer games sold in Australia will legitimate the National Classification Scheme. In the absence of an R18+, the National Classification Scheme has progressively lost currency. Consequently, an emergent “crisis of control” has eroded the potency and utility of the Scheme. 

For a very interestoing and new perspective on the 18+ debate, read thefull CNMRE’s submission here.

Electronic Frontiers Australia (EFA) and AusGamers believe that it is time that Australia accepts that games are not just for children – that games are a highly expressive media capable of conveying complex adult themes that are not suitable for children but which should not be banned. They believe that Australians are capable of making responsible choices about what games they play and what games they allow our children to play. They believe, crucially, that introducing an R18+ rating will help parents and all Australians make more informed choices by providing a clear indicator of video game content and aligning games classification more closely with film classification.

A copy of their submission to the R18+ discussion can be found here.

As reported at nzherald.co.nz , the controversial Section 92A of the Copyright Act has been repealed and a new version has been introduced to Parliament.  To learn about the new version click here

As reported by Laura Parker at gamespot.com.au, only one Australian Attorney-General is publically stating their support for the introduction of an R18+ rating for games.  The others are all non-committal at this stage.

To find out who is in support, click here

Australian Interactive Media Industry Association (AIMIA) today submitted their view on an R18+ classification for computer games.

AIMIA argues that while traditional media continues to be available and regulated to its specific format, new media poses regulatory challenges. For a full understanding and a copy of their submission make the jump here to thier site.

BRISBANE, Queensland–Feb. 24, 2010—EB Games, Australia’s largest video game and entertainment software retailer, today announced that they received over 46,000 submissions in support of the introduction of an R18+ classification for computer games.

In response to customer demand, EB Games gave consumers the opportunity through their 350 stores across Australia and online at www.ebgames.com.au to sign a petition that will form part of the EB Games submission to the Attorney-General’s Department. The EB Games submission, which will be tabled later this week, will support the iGEA submission presented earlier this week.

“EB Games fully supports the iGEA’s submission for the introduction of an R18+ rating. This introduction of an R18+ rating in Australia is long overdue and we have welcomed this opportunity to show the Government that this is an issue that is not only supported by the gaming industry but also by the majority of Australians.” said EB Games Managing Director Steve Wilson.

 EB Games collected over 30,000 hand signed submissions in just 2 weeks along with an additional 16,000 submissions that were collected online in conjunction with Grow Up Australia. This equated to an astonishing total of over 46,000 submissions in support of an R18+ rating.   

In response to this, Steve Wilson stated, “The response that we have received to our petition in just 2 weeks has been simply phenomenal. Over 46,000 Australian’s have taken the time to show their support for the introduction of an R 18+ rating”.

He continued, “This ground swell of support has proven in no uncertain terms once and for all, that there is not just a minority calling for this change, but rather everyday Australians”.

Finally Steve reiterated, “This is not a call for violent video games, but rather a better classification system and fair go for the local industry. Titles such as Left For Dead 2 in their unedited form are being imported unregulated and unclassified into Australia. This is not only concerning from a classification perspective, but it is also affecting local jobs”.     

EB Games will be delivering their submission and all the publics signed submissions, equating to 158kg of paper, to the Attorney-General’s Department this week.

Paul Hunt, former Deputy Director of the OFLC and now Principal Consultant at MLCS Management has made a submission to the public consultation on an R18+ classification for video games. 

I particularly liked the irony of his closing paragraph:

The current discussion is an opportunity for the Australian Government to take a leadership role with its State and Territory colleagues and repair the dangerous gap in the National Classification Scheme created by past mistakes.   The Australian Government and Censorship Ministers have made the wrong decision about this issue in the past.  There is a need to follow South Australian Attorney General Michael Atkinson’s advice on a recent similar issue regarding the rights and freedoms of Australians – an attempt to restrict political comment on the internet: “When one gets public opinion wrong, as I did, one has to change one’s mind.” *  (Emphasis added)

 Paul’s full submission can be found here.

* SA backs down on internet comment curb, http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/02/03/2808495.htm, Feb 3, 2010 7:55am AEDT

22 February 2010

For Immediate Release

Support for an R18+, Growing

The Attorney-General’s Department is set to receive an influx of submissions from people who support the introduction of an R18+ category for computer games into the Australian classification system. The submissions were made via an online form provided by Grow up Australia, an independent group advocating the introduction of an adults only rating for games.

Grow up Australia will contribute 16,055 submissions from people who used their online form. The bulk of the submissions were collected during a partnership with EB Games during which Grow up Australia posters were displayed in all of EB Games’ 250+ Australian stores. A link to the online submission form was also provided via a banner on the EB Games website during the campaign.

Australia is the only developed nation without an adult rating for video games despite the average Australian gamer being 30 years old.[1] In December 2009, the Attorney-General’s Department released a discussion paper calling for community feedback on the issue.

Aaron John Percival, Gamer activist and one of the founders of Grow up Australia, said “support for the introduction of the R18+ rating has been overwhelming with ninety-nine percent of the submissions made through the website in favour of the change”.

The co-founder of the group, Jake Edwards, added that “with less than a week until the deadline for submissions, there is still opportunity for people who want to get involved to make a submission directly to the Attorney-General’s Department”.

To make a submission to the Attorney-General’s Department, log on to: http://www.ag.gov.au/gamesclassification

The submissions will be sent tomorrow so that they will be received before the deadline of the 28th of February 2010.

- END -

MEDIA CONTACT – Aaron John Percival – aaron.john@growupaustralia.com – www.growupaustralia.com

Australia, 19 February, 2010 –

Nintendo confirms it has successfully taken action against an Australian company in relation to game copying devices, commonly referred to as R4 cards. In September 2009 Nintendo filed proceedings in the Federal Court of Australia against RSJ. IT Solutions Pty Ltd which trades as “GadgetGear” – an online seller of gadgets, including gaming consoles and accessories- and the individual directors of the company, Patrick Li and James Li.

GadgetGear and its directors have now acknowledged that game copying devices infringe both Nintendo’s copyright and Nintendo’s trademarks and that they are illegal circumvention devices. As a result, GadgetGear and the directors have agreed to permanently refrain from importing, offering for sale and/or selling game copier devices. GadgetGear and the directors will also pay Nintendo a total of A$620,000.00 by way of damages. GadgetGear will also be delivering to Nintendo all its stock of game copiers for destruction.

Nintendo guards its intellectual property rights in order to protect the interests of its valued consumers, its own interests, and others in the games industry including independent content creation organisations, developers and publishing studios and all distributors of Nintendo products. Nintendo will pursue those who attempt to jeopardise the gaming industry by using all means available to it under the law. In particular, Nintendo is currently contemplating bringing further actions against other sellers of game copying devices in Australia.

Since 2008, Nintendo has pursued over 800 actions (including customs seizures, law-enforcement actions and civil proceedings) in 16 countries, confiscating well over a half million Nintendo DS game copiers. Piracy not only affects sales, it affects the price of video games and employment in the video game industry. Fewer sales of Nintendo’s hardware and software systems means fewer resources that Nintendo, its licensees, developers and publishers have to create and market new video game products which is ultimately to the detriment of video game enthusiasts. When there is a decrease in game development, there is also a decrease in the number of jobs in the industry.

The existence of piracy jeopardises the strength of the video game industry overall.

For more information about Nintendo’s global anti-piracy activities, please visit: http://ap.nintendo.com
 

For further information contact:
Heather Murphy
Public Relations Manager
Nintendo Australia and New Zealand
murphyheat@nal.nintendo.com.au
+61 403 242 209         
+61 3 9730 9900