New rules on game approvals

China’s press and publication regulator has issued new rules on applications for publishing online games in China, signalling a possible acceleration in the handing out of formal approvals.

China stopped granting licences to monetise online games in March 2018, hurting the industry and developers such as Tencent Holdings Ltd and NetEase Inc. It started up approvals again in December, only to ask local governments to pause on submitting applications in February.