In China, a local gaming company paid for publishing a game without a license. She was fined $99 thousand. This is the first case of such a fine in China after the licensing freeze.
This is reported by the South China Morning Post. The publication does not name the company itself. She works in Beijing, but in what genres is unknown.
$99 thousand is an amount 7 times higher than the company’s revenue from the released game. According to the new rules, for the release of an unlicensed game, a fine may be imposed 5-10 times higher than its earnings. It is unclear what factors guide the Chinese courts determining the size of the fine.
Recall that almost the entire 2018 games in China were not issued identification numbers. The licensing process was being reorganized in the country. During this time, the regulator has changed, and the rules for issuing licenses have tightened.
By the end of the defrosting, the regulator had accumulated thousands of applications from publishers. At the beginning of 2019, the authorities did not have time to consider them all. Now titles are entering the market, but the lists of approved ones are smaller than before. Both Chinese and foreign publishers have faced tougher censorship. You can view the new list of requirements for games here.
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