Games and the Govt - Part One

Labour MP Tom Watson talks about Gamers' Voice, tax breaks, and getting PEGI though Parliament

Feature by Johnny Minkley Contributor

Published on Dec. 7, 2009

GamesIndustry.biz Let's talk about the ratings. The Byron Review was June 2008, the recommendations that came from that - it was announced that the PEGI system would be adopted and come into law. Where are we at with that? Do you expect that to come into law before the next election?

Tom Watson MP

I would hope so. If there are clauses in the new Digital Economy Bill, which is going to be debated in the House of Lords in a couple of weeks' time, that should get to the House of Commons in February and PEGI will be the system that's adopted.

It's not the PEGI system that people remember from a few years ago. They've really upped their game on this and I think the labelling and classification is better, simpler, easier to understand and I think the industry is pretty committed as well that once this ratings system goes through they're going to invest in a public education campaign so that people actually know what the ratings mean and they're aware when they can make choices in retail outlets.

The one thing I do think perhaps going forward and in the medium term we probably need on games, and I say this as a parent, is some kind of usability rating. There is a degree of confusion I think with people buying games for children about whether the current ratings, it actually rates the content rather than the playability, and it would be very good if we could improve on that. But right now we've got to get the classification right for content and I'm pretty certain that will go through.

GamesIndustry.biz It has taken a very long time since the recommendations were announced. For a government that says it takes the safety of children very seriously, some might argue that it doesn't look like it's one of their priorities.

Tom Watson MP

There was a fiercely fought battle between different entities that wanted to actually win the classification system and I think it was right that the government let that debate take place. In the end PEGI won through, quite a close battle with the BBFC, and it was appropriate that they took a bit of time just to bottom out what the argument is.

I was personally convinced that PEGI is scalable to a European level and that is why I went for it and I think the industry took on a lot of concerns of parliamentarians and campaigners about how they simplify their ratings. It's there now, it's going to be in the bill, let's hope it goes through before a general election and the industry can get a bit of certainty in their lives and get on and promote it.

GamesIndustry.biz What are your feelings about what should be done to enforce the ratings for both retailers and parents; whether there should be penalties legislated for?

Tom Watson MP

As long as we've got a ratings system and as long as parents know what they're purchasing, that's the key thing. And I actually think the retailers in the games space know full well they've got to make sure that's done. From my personal experience they're pretty good at this.

I do think there's work to be done on public education so that parents are aware of the system and that's going to take a year or two to bed in. I would never dream of letting my kids anywhere near Modern Warfare 2, although my kids are pretty young and wouldn't be able to play it, but parents should make that same judgement.

This is about families sorting out their own affairs and we should equip them with all the information they need to make those judgements.

GamesIndustry.biz The education aspect - some would argue the games industry has already gone further than others in terms of putting the parental locks on consoles and they've done as much as they can so far. The industry has agreed to help fund marketing of these new ratings, to spread education. Do you think the government has a responsibility here, too?

Tom Watson MP

Yeah, look, we're in this together and this is about building a better society. We had this same debate when VHS came out 25-30 years ago, about will kids be exposed to 18-content films. Yes they were, we had some education, and now parents are pretty responsible about what their kids can watch on DVDs.

Let's go through that process. I think the industry has really come a long way in the last few years on this stuff and we should give them credit for that.