BBFC: Online game ratings inevitable

At its offices in Soho, London, the UK's movie- and game-rating organisation, the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), today announced that it would be launching a new online classification system. BBFC Online is currently a voluntary scheme that enables Web sites to provide classification information to consumers and ensure that underage kids can't download unsuitable content.

Walt Disney, 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. have already signed up for the scheme, and the BBFC is expecting all the other major studios, along with online retailers and aggregators, to join. The new system will mean that a BBFC logo will appear alongside movie titles online, along with a 'white card', similar to the 'black card' shown before a movie in cinemas. The card shows information about any objectionable content. The system is a world first, and it comes at a time when the entertainment industries are struggling to find a solution to kids accessing products online to circumvent the need to buy from a retailer who would ask for ID.

The BBFC is keen that the service be adopted as a voluntary measure, and it doesn't want to make it mandatory. Director David Cooke said that he is well aware that feelings run high when it comes to so-called 'policing' of the Internet. At the moment it does seem that this scheme is only for movies. Cooke explained, "This is not an attempt to censor the Internet. It is a voluntary scheme. It is also not about regulating video games online... I'm hoping that we won't need to see any legislation for this scheme."

When it comes to games, Cooke believes that legislation is inevitable. He said, "I think there may well be legislation at some point if you look at games." He said that in light of the Byron Review, the games industry should expect to see some kind of compulsory legislation regarding the classification of games online in the next two or three years.

Cooke said his organisation will be working together with the Pan European Game Information Online system to rate online games, and he will be recommending that some elements of the BBFC Online system be used.

The BBFC is quick to point out that the new classification won't extend to games hosted online, such as massively multiplayer online games, for example.

However, games and movies available through download services such as Xbox Live Marketplace, WiiWare and the PlayStation Network would likely be classifiable. Peter Johnson, head of policy and business development, said, "We are talking to all the major players in the arena, as what they're doing is selling a game/movie to the consumer and just using the Internet as a form of delivery."

The organisation will be leaving it to the actual e-tailers to decide how to confirm a seller's age, and suggested using credit cards for those over 18, and Web ID sites for those younger. Johnson said, "What it isn't going to be is that you simply put in your date of birth -- we can't just accept self-certification."

When asked how this extra classification would affect its workload, Cooke rubbished claims that the organisation wouldn't be able to cope. Johnson added, "We still only have to make one classification decision. The amount of extra work is zero."