Game Industry Promotion Act

The Game Industry Promotion Act regulates matters concerning the production, distribution, circulation, and use of games, and it is a law enacted to promote the sound development of the game industry and to protect users.

Its main subjects of regulation are producers, distributors, and circulators of game products, game-provision establishments, and game products that are subject to review by the Game Rating and Administration Committee.

The Act also contains various restrictions and obligations to prevent social harms such as the encouragement of speculative behavior, the circulation of illegal games, and excessive immersion in games.

Despite rapid technological development and market expansion, the game industry is subject to strong regulatory legislation.

Legal risks specific to game content may arise in areas such as speculativeness, youth protection, payment limits, and disclosure of probability-based items.

Because violations may result in serious sanctions such as criminal punishment, business suspension, and service blocking, thorough review and compliance in advance are necessary.

1. Game Products
A game product refers to any content that provides entertainment, leisure, learning, or exercise effects through a computer program or mechanical device.

This generally includes video games, mobile games, and arcade games, and it also includes game content, DLC, season passes, and metaverse-type games.

However, speculative game products under the law and casinos under the Tourism Promotion Act are excluded.

2. Speculative Game Products
These are game products in which a gain or loss of property arises depending on the outcome, combining betting, payouts, and probabilistic chance.

Slot machines, roulette-type games, and probability-based items are also subject to review for whether they are speculative.

3. Game Product Content Information
This refers to information on the degree of violence, sexual content, and speculativeness of a game product as well as its operating method, and it serves as key submission material during rating classification review.

4. Game Industry
This refers to the industrial sector that includes the production, distribution, and provision of game products and game merchandise, together with all incidental services.

5. Game Production Business
This refers to a business that plans, develops, or reproduces game products.

6. Game Distribution Business
This refers to the domestic and overseas importation of game products, copyright management, and supply operations.

7. Game Provision Business
This refers to a business that operates a game arcade or provides game products to the public.

8. Youth Game Provision Business / General Game Provision Business
This refers to establishments that provide games rated for all ages or rated as not for youth at a physical location.

9. Internet Computer Game Facility Provision Business
This refers to PC rooms, VR cafes, metaverse zones, cloud game cafes, and the like.

10. Composite Distribution Game Provision Business
This refers to establishments that operate a game provision business together with a restaurant, cafe, amusement facility, or the like at the same location.

11. Game Product-Related Business Operators
This refers to business operators that engage in the game production, distribution, or provision business.

12. Youth
This refers to a person under 19 years of age under the Juvenile Protection Act.

13. Probability-Based Items
This refers to items whose performance or outcome is determined by chance upon purchase, whether paid or free.

All game products must undergo rating classification review by the Game Rating and Administration Committee before release, and distributing a product without a rating may result in a penalty surcharge and a business suspension order.

Ratings are divided into All, 12+, 15+, Youth Prohibited, and speculative game products.

When a rating classification is applied for, the review is based on the game product's violence, sexual content, speculative nature, addictiveness, and potential harm to youth.

A company should prepare in advance, in accordance with the rating classification result, its target service age, operating policy, and even its advertising and marketing strategy.

Speculative (gambling-type) game products are game products in which financial gains or losses arise depending on the game outcome, and they are strictly prohibited under the law.

Betting, payouts, reward structures based on chance outcomes, and casino-simulating content fall into this category, and if detected, they may lead to refusal of rating classification, business suspension, and even criminal punishment.

Probability-based items are also subject to review for gambling characteristics, so disclosure of item probabilities and the duty to notify users are required.

Companies should establish a transparent information disclosure system for removing gambling elements or for probability-based content.

The Game Industry Promotion Act, in connection with the Juvenile Protection Act, restricts minors' use of harmful games and applies the shutdown system.

Games rated as prohibited for minors must be equipped with a mandatory system that blocks access by persons under 19 years of age, and a violation may result in an administrative fine and a suspension of business operations.

Internet computer game facility providers (such as PC rooms and VR rooms) may keep only games that comply with the shutdown system and rating classification.

Businesses should design in advance an age verification system for minors, integration with the shutdown system, and a feature to limit game usage time.

A probability-based item is content among the items that game users purchase, whether for a fee or free of charge, whose performance or outcome is determined by a random element.

For probability-based items, disclosure of the acquisition probability information and prior notice of the item contents are legally mandatory.

Manipulation, false probability labeling, or the running of unfair events may result in a penalty surcharge or criminal punishment, and any change in probability is permitted only after notice to users.

A company should systematically establish and operate a probability disclosure page, server-side probability record retention, and event notice standards.

Game development businesses, distribution businesses, provision businesses, internet cafes (PC bangs), VR arcades, and mixed-use establishments must file a business report or register in order to operate.

Operating without a report or providing content without registration may result in penalty surcharges, business suspension, content blocking, and criminal punishment.

New services, spatial VR and AR game zones, and metaverse zones are also subject to business reporting, so a legal review is required before service launch.

Businesses should review the business registration requirements and reporting documents under the Game Industry Promotion Act and prepare the reporting procedures with the competent local government in advance.