Today is the Chinese solar term "Dongzhi" (Winter Solstice), and in the gaming industry, the winter is coming.

China's gaming regulatory authority, the National Press and Publication Administration responsible for game approvals, released the "Online Game Management Measures (Draft for Soliciting Opinions)," seeking public input.

Here are my personal insights. Welcome to discuss: 

1: The entire industry is mandated to obtain a new business license (similar to a combination of special operations and online content provider license). This license is required for both development and operation, excluding distribution. Even if a game is not launched, the license is still mandatory. This requirement applies only to domestic companies and does not extend to overseas entities.

2: The company's owner, legal representative, key personnel, and ultimate beneficial owner must not be foreigners, individuals of Chinese descent, or Chinese nationals residing abroad. If any of these individuals relocate outside of China, the issuance of this license is prohibited, thereby restricting the company from engaging in operational, distribution, and development activities. The use of methods such as disguise, proxy representation, or any means of indirect control through organizational restructuring or changes is strictly forbidden. Individuals must maintain physical presence within the country, and both business premises and servers must be located within China.

3: The range of fines has been expanded and significantly increased. Most violations result in fines ranging from 6 to 10 times the illegal revenue of the company, with the maximum penalty set at 10 times.

4: First-time offenses for content violations now incur fines, especially for activities such as smuggling unofficial content, damaging national sentiments, or disparaging national heroes. Fines for such violations range from 6 to 10 times the illegal revenue, with the maximum penalty set at 10 times.

5: Stricter penalties for minors, including stringent measures for age verification, real-name authentication, and personal information security. Individuals, including employees (project leaders, development heads, distribution heads, etc.), face fines ranging from a minimum of 10,000 RMB to a maximum of 100,000 RMB for each violation. For repeat offenses, fines start at 100,000 RMB and can go up to 1 million RMB per person. Corporate fines are not based on revenue but start at a minimum of 50 million RMB.

6: Buying or selling game licenses and using fake licenses are explicitly prohibited and subject to fines.

7: In gaming, mandatory features such as forced PvP, daily logins, first-purchase bonuses, consecutive purchase benefits, pure gacha systems (all powerful heroes or weapons must be obtainable directly), setting up auction houses, and artificially inflating virtual item prices are forbidden. Recharge limits and high-amount warnings must be implemented.

8: Game testing cannot exceed 20,000 users, must be wiped after testing, and cannot offer in-app advertising or in-app purchases. Each technical test must be reported to the government, and any service suspension must also be reported. Separate rules apply to small games.

9: Websites for trading in-game currency or virtual items cannot be affiliated with the game company and transactions must use real-name digital yuan wallets. Other anonymous trading methods are not allowed.

10: Game licenses must be launched within one year of issuance. Failure to launch requires a report to the authorities.

11: High-value rewards for online game live streaming are prohibited, including those related to bullet curtain games.

Encourage and reward high-quality and original games, and promote the expansion of overseas markets for games.