End Game…VSC announces that it is finally set to take over video game censorship from the BBFC

Read more VSC and PEGI Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from gamepolitics.com

The Video Standards Council announced this morning that the Department for Culture Media & Sport (DCMS) has confirmed their intention to appoint the organization as the regulator for rating games in the United Kingdom using the PEGI system used for the rest of Europe. The DCMS has informed the UK Parliament of their intentions.Laurie Hall, Director-General of the VSC said: This news is very welcome and gives us the mandate to undertake the role of statutory video games regulator in the UK. It is role that we will relish and which will ensure that children and younger people are protected and kept safe from inappropriate video games. It has been a long and arduous task to arrive at this point and we thank all those involved in helping to establish PEGI as the legally recognised system. All the necessary administrative and technical systems are in place and we are simply awaiting confirmation of when we can officially start. The VSC has been rating video games since 1994. We will use our wealth of skill and experience to good effect in our new role as the national video games regulator. No official date has been set but July this year has been mentioned several times.

Rated Spider for Tangled Web of Rules…UK video games now reported to be exclusively using PEGI ratings from July 2012

Read more VSC and PEGI Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from thegamershub.net

Nearly three years ago, PEGI was selected to be the organisation to rate videogames, and passed into law in 2010 as part of the Digital Economy Bill, but due to issues behind-the-scenes its full implementation has been delayed. Now Dr. Jo Twist UKIE, the UK trade group representing the video game industry, said: Our next major campaign launches this summer to promote PEGI and to demystify video games to parents. This campaign will launch when PEGI is finally implemented. PEGI is indeed progressing and the latest estimated implementation date is this July.

Playing a Long Game…BBFC to VSC handover of video game ratings now set for early 2012

Read more VSC and PEGI Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from mcvuk.com

The last report of the handover of video game censorship from the BBFC to the VSC suggested that this would occur by Christmas. Now the handover date is being talked about in terms of sometime early 2012. However the video game trade group UKIE has confirmed that plans are still on course for PEGI, which is currently awaiting final EU sign offs before UK Government grants the on-pack marks as the only ratings standard for video games.

Waiting Game…BBFC hand over of games to the VSC said to be delayed, possibly until Christmas

Read more VSC and PEGI Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from gamesindustry.biz

The ghost of Christmas yet to come The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has admitted that complex technical points are behind the ongoing delay to legal implementation of PEGI age-ratings for video games in the UK. Negotiations between the Government, overseen personally by Culture Minister Ed Vaizey, the Video Standards Council, and the BBFC, are understood to be at a delicate stage. But sources familiar with the matter said there was optimism that the system could still be passed into law by Christmas. As revealed by GI.biz in January, a complicated debate over packaging regulations had thrown a spanner in the works, with the BBFC’s role in particular requiring definitive clarification. The main sticking point remains the issue of linear (i.e. trailer) content, which regulations require is rated by the BBFC.

All Agog…VSC suggests that online games censorship will tend to be advisory rather than mandatory

Read more VSC and PEGI Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from mcvuk.comga

The Video Standards Council (VSC) is the UK games censor in waiting. They have commented on a move by the online games distributor to allow Australian’s to evade the state censorship of Witcher 2. The VSC said GOG.com’s recent decision to ditch location controls is symptomatic of global trends and speculated  that all entertainment media could eventually shift toward an advisory rather than a legally-based system. It seems inevitable that such systems will have an impact on the way national regulators control online content though the more authoritarian regimes won’t have any qualms about shutting down a site if they deem it necessary, the VSC told Edge. However, the more benign censorship/ratings organisations will probably move away from the mandatory model and replace it with an advisory systems which puts the onus on consumers to make informed buying decisions through the provision of detailed consumer information. THe VSC added, though, that it doesn’t believe regional ratings body are in danger of becoming irrelevant: We believe the public tends to trust the judgement and advice of the more independent, established and respected ratings organisations and will continue to do so.

We Dare is Actually Not Very Daring…Investigating the hype for the party game We Dare

Read more VSC and PEGI Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

Based on article from cubed3.com

Due to be released on Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3 later this year, We Dare features over 35 mini-games that take a distinctly adult approach, with marketing materials encouraging two players to kiss a Wii Remote simultaneously, spank each other to control on-screen avatars, and striptease to a variety of songs. With its highly suggestive trailer and product description, Cubed3 queried PEGI on the seemingly low 12+ age rating. PEGI stated that they do not look at the surrounding context of a game, only the in-game content. The suggestive naughtiness by the human actors in the YouTube trailer did not figure in the decision for the game rating: PEGI does not take into account the context of a game when rating it, we only look at the contents of the game. [We Dare] has been rated as a PEGI 12 because it contains mild swearing, minor assault on a human-like character and words/activities that amount to obvious sexual innuendo, explicit sexual descriptions or images and sexual posturing. However PEGI: Do demand that these types of artwork [are] on the same level as the game. In the case of We Dare, the cover and trailer are in correspondence with our guidelines. It was considered that We Dare might justify a higher rating due to a specific (sexual) atmosphere, but this proposal was rejected by the Video Standards Council, an independent organisation that verifies PEGI ratings for use in the UK: The game itself is in fact less sexual/offensive than the marketing campaign leads us to believe (for example, you cannot see real spanking in the game. There is a ‘stripping game’ but you don’t have to undress; throwing away keys or anything that reduces your weight is good enough).

Game Rules Too Complicated…Handover of games censorship from BBFC to VSC delayed at least until September

Read more BBFC News at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from mcvuk.com

Indecision over whether games featuring video content still need a BBFC certificate has temporarily derailed the implementation of PEGI ratings. The handover from the BBFC to the VSC will not now occur until September at the very earliest. A new government proposal states that interactive entertainment which features linear content (such as trailers) would require a BBFC rating. That means a game that features a video in it will need to have both a PEGI and BBFC label on the box. UKIE representing UK games producers condemned the proposal, saying in a statement: Any dual labelling is contrary to the principles that were established in having PEGI introduced into the Digital Economy Act and if this proposal were implemented we believe it would only cause unnecessary and potentially harmful consumer confusion.

Playing Waiting Games…Handover of games censorship from BBFC to VSC delayed

Read more VSC and PEGI Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from mcvuk.com

The rollout of the new PEGI video games classification system will miss its current April 2010 deadline and will not be introduced until July of this year at the earliest. The Video Standards Council (VSC) will then take over administration of producer assigned games ratings using PEGI symbols and classifications. The Conservative culture minister Ed Vaizey has admitted that: There’s been some technical delays to iron out a few kinks – nothing fundamental, nothing serious. And we’ll crack on with it as fast as we can. mcvuk.com believes that the delay is due to the time it will take to obtain European parliamentary approval.

Digitally Delayed…Video games will continue with BBFC ratings until April 2010

Read more VSC Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

Based on article from dunyatoday.com

The Video Standards Council has confirmed the proposed changes to the age ratings system for games in the UK will not be applied until April 1, 2011. Delay in PEGI rating being legally enforceable has been blamed on the Digital Economy Act, which while passed, has not been made effective as of yet. Here’s the official statement from the VSC obtained by MCV: The BBFC have approached the UK Government expressing concern that games rated PEGI 18 will be released in the UK without BBFC certification. The Digital Economy Act has been passed in the UK but has not yet been made effective. This means there is no change in the procedure for releasing games in the UK. If a game is rated PEGI 18 it must be submitted to the BBFC for a legal classification. This is irrespective of whether it contains exempt content as it reflects the voluntary agreement made by the games industry to avoid confusion over 18 rated games. Games must also be submitted to the BBFC if the contain any extraneous video which is not part of the game. This includes trailers. The Government has said the legislative change is likely to be implemented on April 1st 2011. The VSC is involved in the discussions regarding the implementation of the new legislation and will ensure that all coders are made aware of the changes to the procedure in good time to allow submissions to be adjusted. In the mean time please continue with your submissions in the same way that you have always done until the VCS advises differently. It is important to stress that no games must appear for sale in UK shops with a PEGI 18 logo prior to April 1st 2011. Enforcement of PEGI ratings was previously to be in effect by October 2010.

Takeover Games…VSC expect to take over as games censors in early autumn

Read more VSC Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

Based on article from gamesindustry.biz

The Video Standards Council, the new games censors in waiting, are expecting to take over the job from the BBFC around September this year. Speaking to Eurogamer TV,  Laurie Hall, VSC director general said: The Secretary of State has to be satisfied that everything has been put in place before he presses the green button. There are various arrangements that have to be put in place: a statutory instrument for dealing with packaging regulations; the Secretary of State has to be happy that the arrangements that the VSC itself has put in place to carry out its statutory duties are in order before he designates us. When exactly will all this happen? We don’t know. Our best guess is the early autumn, possibly September. Speaking to Eurogamer TV earlier in the year, the BBFC’s senior policy advisor, David Austin, said: We’ve been talking to them pretty much constantly since the decision as to how it’s all going to happen. We’ll be working in parallel forever, as long as there’s a VSC and PEGI, because we will still retain responsibility for certain types of game and because game and film content are moving closer. While the details are still being thrashed out, it is understood the BBFC will retain responsibility for rating the small number of pornographic games requiring an R18 rating.