China Daily reported on an anonymous post regarding the Chinese ministries having a discussion to reassess the ban of consoles in 2000.The ban was issued due to the fear that video games would potentially harm children mentally and physically.
"We are reviewing the policy and have conducted some surveys and held discussions with other ministries on the possibility of opening up the game console market," a source from the Ministry of Culture, who asked not to be named, said.
"However, since the ban was issued by seven ministries more than a decade ago, we will need approval from all parties to lift," the source said.
If the ban is lifted, Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo could make millions if not billions in China. The current population is currently 1.3 Billion, compared to U.S.A and Europe which are 739,165,03 and 313,914,040 respectively. This means a huge boost in revenue may be possible if done right.
Currently, the Xbox is being sold as a bundle with Kinect in China, not as a video game console but for education or medical treatment.
"Kinect's entry into China does not mean Microsoft's game console has come to China.Currently, we don't have a timetable for our game consoles entering the Chinese market. It needs government's approval," Zhang Yaqin, chairman of Microsoft Corp's Asia-Pacific Research and Development Group.
News that Sony has set up an office in China for research and development last year. So leeway is being shown here and there and the ministries of China may just lift this ban sooner rather than later.