The latest attempt to rein in online gaming addiction and obsessive chatting comes in the form of regulations in Chongqing closing web cafés between midnight and 8 am. New rules from the city’s telecom oversight department require ISPs to shut off connections to web cafés overnight; during the trial period, county goverments will enforce the policy in addition to working a new campaign to uncover unlicensed operators.
The city’s web café owners are not pleased with this development. Already facing an oversaturated, intensely competitive environment due to a massive influx earlier this year of operators from Fujian who bought up licenses and drove down prices, cafe owners fear that forced closure after midnight could lead to widespread business failure.
- Chongqing Evening News (Chinese): All web cafés to cut net access at midnight
- Image from Xinhua
- Previously on Danwei: Online game time limits: total failure