The Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism(MCST) is about to periodically investigate the reality of game addiction among minors.

YoungJin Kwak the vice-minister of the MCST announced today it will investigate all kinds of game policies and provide tailored post-measures for prevention and solution for the game addiction.

The government assumes that about 470,000 minors(6.5% of total 7.24 million elementary, middle, and high school students) are addicted to the games today.

It is, therefore, planning to start inspecting the policies enforced to prevent the game addiction this August, also establishing mandatory systems that require consent of parents and self-confirmation when the minors sign up the games and notice their parents and themselves the history of their game play.

The MCST’s action is likely to pertain to recent regulations made by other ministries. It stresses that just making bunch of regulations would not solve the problem, but only prevention and treatment would do.

“We are well aware of the growing concern about the side-effect of the game addiction. But it is somewhat sad that some people are just blaming the phenomenon without having a discussion. The game industry also needs to burden social responsibility of the side-effect since it has grown up into a certain size,” said Kwak. ”The game is one of many cultural lifes played by the minors and the adults alike. We also should not neglect its industrial contribution which has achieved more than half of content exportation and huge employment.”