South Korea Includes "Fatigue System" to Curb Internet Gaming Addiction

South Korea Monday announced tougher rules to combat Internet gaming addiction including a fatigue system encouraging players to switch off.

South Korea Monday announced tougher rules to combat Internet gaming addiction including a "fatigue system" encouraging players to switch off.

The announcement follows deaths blamed on the addiction, including the case of a couple accused of letting their baby daughter starve while they raised a "virtual" child on the Internet.

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The culture ministry said three major game operators would have to introduce a "shutdown" programme from September. Younger users will be limited to a time period set by a parent or guardian.

The firms would also have to restrict access by teenagers at night by using a "fatigue system", which makes games harder as time goes by so that the player becomes bored, it said in a statement.

Currently only four games use the fatigue system but a total of 15 games will have it by the end of this year, it said.

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Official data estimates the highly-wired nation has two million web addicts, or 8.8 percent of total online users.

The couple in the baby death case are currently on trial for negligent homicide.

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Police have alleged they "raised" an online girl game character while leaving their own prematurely born daughter at home, feeding her just once a day between 12-hour stretches at an Internet cafe.

In March a 32-year-old man died after reportedly playing for five days with few breaks. A similar incident was reported involving a 28-year-old man in 2005.

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Source-AFP
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