Laura Parker at gamespot.com.au has written a fantastic story about the recently Government Report into R18+ public consultation.
Following the initial news that 98.2 percent of the 59,678 public submissions received by the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department were in favour of introducing R18+, GameSpot AU has combed the report’s contents to present a detailed summary of the key points. See here
Based on the Minister’s media release, I thought we’d make an initial response and give some consideration to a more detailed reply later:
We are pleased that this issue was included on the agenda for today’s Standing Committee of Attorney’s General meeting. As evidenced in the Attorney General’s status report, there is overwhelming interest and support of the issue, with over 98 per cent of responses in favour of the R18+ classification.
The iGEA has been very supportive of the Government’s commitment to a thorough examination of all of the perspectives on the classification and, along with a wide range of individuals, industry bodies, academics and community groups, the iGEA made its submission as part of what appeared to be an exhaustive and detailed public consultation period. We are somewhat bemused therefore when the Minister stated that Censorship Ministers have “requested further analysis of community and expert views.”
Further, we are concerned that it is noted in the Attorney General’s media release that “Ministers today agreed that further work needs to be done before a decision can be made.” There is undeniably strong support for the introduction of an adult classification for video games across a wide section of the community. (In fact, the recent petition arranged by GAME illustrates that there is a high level of resonance and support on this issue, with more petitioners engaging in this issue than for the petition opposing WorkChoices.) Our understanding that this was the very reason for the Discussion Paper launched in December, and call for the Attorney General’s Department to immediately commit to a reasonable and transparent timeline and process to resolve the issue.
THE HON BRENDAN O’CONNOR MP
MINISTER FOR HOME AFFAIRS
R 18+ CLASSIFICATION FOR COMPUTER GAMES
CONSULTATION REPORT RELEASED
The Standing Committee of Attorneys General today agreed to release a status report following public consultation about whether Australia’s Classification Scheme should include an R 18+ classification category for computer games.
Minister for Home Affairs Brendan O’Connor said: “The report released today shows the initial outcomes of the public consultation process which received approximately 60,000 submissions – an overwhelming level of response.”
Preliminary analysis indicates:
The status report also contains samples of frequent ‘free text’ comments and a summary of arguments raised by 34 community, church and industry groups who lodged submissions.
“It is not just the weight of numbers that need to be considered. It is also the strength of the arguments on each side. That is why Ministers today agreed that further work needs to be done before a decision can be made.”
“This issue is of considerable interest to Australians so the Government is releasing a status report on the consultation to ensure the community is kept well informed of its progress.”
“Censorship Ministers have not yet made a decision on whether or not an R 18+ classification for computer games should be introduced and have requested further analysis of community and expert views.”
“The Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department continues to process and analyse submissions from the public consultation, so figures are preliminary and may change as the processing and analysis of submissions continues,” Mr O’Connor said.
“Thank you to the thousands of people who made a submission,” Mr O’Connor said.
“This feedback will play an important role in assisting Ministers to make a decision on this important public issue.”
The status report is available at www.ag.gov.au/gamesclassification.
Stakeholder submissions and samples of submissions received from individuals will also be made available on this website.
To see the 7.30 Report on the highly emotive R18+ debate that aired on17 March 2010 click here
Following is a press release from the Hon Brendan O’Connor MP, Minsiter for Home Affairs dicsussing the R18+ Classification submission process (although somewhat vaguely):
THE HON BRENDAN O’CONNOR MP
MINISTER FOR HOME AFFAIRS
55,000-PLUS SUBMISSIONS RECEIVED ON
R 18+ CLASSIFICATION FOR COMPUTER GAMES
(4 May 2010) Minister for Home Affairs Brendan O’Connor today welcomed the more than 55,000 submissions received in response to the R18+ Classification for Computer Games Discussion Paper.
“The response on whether the National Classification Scheme should include an R 18+ classification for computer games indicates a high level of interest in this issue in the Australian community,” Mr O’Connor said.
“It is good to see that this public consultation has generated so much interest,” Mr O’Connor said
“The submissions received in this consultation process will assist the Commonwealth and other censorship ministers’ consideration about whether an adult classification for computer games should be introduced.
“It is important to note that changes to the National Classification Code require unanimous agreement between the Commonwealth, States and Territories.”
The Attorney-General’s Department will now prepare a report on the consultation for the Standing Committee of Attorneys General.
Information about those submissions that did not request confidentiality will be made public in due course.
The public consultation which began on 14 December 2009 has now closed.
Contact: Senior Policy and Media Adviser, Brian Humphreys 0438 595 567
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 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.
