Initial details on Dr. Byron’s game violence review unveiled

We’ve received some of the first details regarding Dr. Tanya Byron’s review on violent video games classification. The report will detail her findings regarding problems with the BBFC and PEGI, along with her own recommendations. The details are available in the full article.

The first details regarding Dr. Tanya Byron’s review regarding violent video games and children has come into light. And from the looks of it, the reports indicate that Dr. Byron has criticized both the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) and its European-wide counterpart, PEGI.

Regarding the BBFC, Byron noted that its classification system was too confusing to properly understand, and that its measures were not tough enough.

PEGI was also criticized for its use of confusing symbols, as well as the ease at which distributors could easily chose their own ratings by filling in a form about their games.

To this end, Byron recommended the use of a single classification system. Its age ratings would be required to be clearly visible on the game’s packaging, like the ESRB‘s current procedure.

Going into specifics, Byron further added that the classification board in mind would carry an age 12 rating for games. This rating is also currently used by the BBFC in rating movies, though not for games. As Byron elaborated:

We have to make child digital safety a priority. If you are under 18, you should not be able to buy an ‘18’ game and if you are under 12, you should not be able to buy a ‘12’ game.

Byron further recommended that retailers who were caught selling games to children below this age bracket would be penalized with a fine, and up to five year’s prison time.

The doctor also recommended that all existing game consoles be equipped with some form of parental block. Byron further called for a largescale education campaign for parents, teachers and childcare professionals to ensure that they would know how to responsibly handle their children’s experiences in gaming.

We remind the readers that this is just a preliminary look into Dr. Byron’s report. Drop by again as we pick up more detailed information regarding this matter.

Via Times Online