Under what circumstances (if any) can a child in the UK be legally allowed to play a video game which, under the legally enforceable games ratings system, they are not old enough to buy?
November 10, 2009 8:26 AM Subscribe
Under what circumstances (if any) can a child in the UK be legally allowed to play a video game which, under the legally enforceable games ratings system, they are not old enough to buy?
In the past we have run sessions for children aged 10-16 with a video game rated 12+ under the PEGI system. At the time these sessions were run, the PEGI system was an entirely voluntary system in the UK, where these sessions took place. However, as of September 2009, the PEGI system is now legally enforceable for video games. This means that to sell a game with a 12+ PEGI rating to an 11-year old child would now be a criminal offence.
(For what it's worth, we ran these sessions for the purposes of educational research, and if it is legally possible are interested in running more for the same reason.)
I have several questions around this that I'd be grateful if the hive mind could help me with:
1. Am I right in assuming that we're fine legally for the past sessions we already ran? This has involved kids under the age of 12 playing and taking home (non-pirated, and bought by us) copies of the game software, which they presumably still have.
2. Does the legally enforceable nature of the PEGI system apply retroactively? That is, can games released BEFORE September 2009 with a 12+ rating now not be sold to children, or is it only games released after the new system took effect?
3. Is buying a 12+ game for the purposes of allowing a child to use it now illegal in the same way that selling that game directly to the child would be?
4. Is there any way for us to legally run further sessions with 12+ rated software and children under the age of 12? (In this hypothetical scenario the children would be provided with the game, rather than buying it.) Could parents give their consent for their children to use such a game, in the context of a workshop they have to explicitly sign their kids up for? Could a school agree to allow the children to use such software in classrooms? Are there any legal options here?
Thanks in advance everyone, your help is greatly appreciated.
In the past we have run sessions for children aged 10-16 with a video game rated 12+ under the PEGI system. At the time these sessions were run, the PEGI system was an entirely voluntary system in the UK, where these sessions took place. However, as of September 2009, the PEGI system is now legally enforceable for video games. This means that to sell a game with a 12+ PEGI rating to an 11-year old child would now be a criminal offence.
(For what it's worth, we ran these sessions for the purposes of educational research, and if it is legally possible are interested in running more for the same reason.)
I have several questions around this that I'd be grateful if the hive mind could help me with:
1. Am I right in assuming that we're fine legally for the past sessions we already ran? This has involved kids under the age of 12 playing and taking home (non-pirated, and bought by us) copies of the game software, which they presumably still have.
2. Does the legally enforceable nature of the PEGI system apply retroactively? That is, can games released BEFORE September 2009 with a 12+ rating now not be sold to children, or is it only games released after the new system took effect?
3. Is buying a 12+ game for the purposes of allowing a child to use it now illegal in the same way that selling that game directly to the child would be?
4. Is there any way for us to legally run further sessions with 12+ rated software and children under the age of 12? (In this hypothetical scenario the children would be provided with the game, rather than buying it.) Could parents give their consent for their children to use such a game, in the context of a workshop they have to explicitly sign their kids up for? Could a school agree to allow the children to use such software in classrooms? Are there any legal options here?
Thanks in advance everyone, your help is greatly appreciated.
You should definitely talk to a lawyer. However, if the UK law works anything like the voluntary US rating system, I imagine that it's prohibited for retailers to sell the game to under age kids, not for the kids to play the games. You should get a release from the parents, though. If some prosecutor got a bug up their ass, you might still be charged with something like contributing the delinquency of a minor. Talk to a lawyer.
posted by paulg at 10:05 AM on November 10, 2009
posted by paulg at 10:05 AM on November 10, 2009
This thread is closed to new comments.
But there is an exemption from this offence if the supply is not in the course of business, so I believe that you would not be committing an offence unless you were then selling the games to the underage children following their sessions. It is probably an offence for a shop to be selling you the games if they know that they will be played by children under the age classification.
The system is going to be incorporated into the Video Recordings Act and will be overseen by the Video Standards Council. A guide to the law can be downloaded from their website, but due to their annoying design I can't provide a direct link so you'll have to navigate by clicking the Law link from this page http://www.videostandards.org.uk/
posted by electricinca at 9:08 AM on November 10, 2009