China: Millions Addicted To 'Unhealthy' Online Games

Beijing, China (AHN) - Nearly 10 percent of China's teens are addicted to "unhealthy" Internet games, a lawmaker said Friday.

The comment by Li Jianguo, vice chair of a committee of the National People's Congress, appeared in Friday state-run Beijing Times. The government is seeking tougher measures requiring game makers to include ways to oversee how long teens can play Internet games. One technique would boot gamers after a certain period of time.

Such attempts are seen as a way for the government to limit exposure to "unhealthy" messages, including pornography or anti-state beliefs.

In 2006, the government told all Chinese game makers to embed technology requiring game players reveal their real name.

In similar news, the Shanghai Mental Health Center said up to 2.6 percent of middle school students it surveyed are "addicted to the Web" due to stress from study, the Shanghai Daily reported Friday. In several cases, teens said they slept in Internet cafes and found a sense of achievement in online activities, the newspaper said.