FTC finds video game industry better than music, movie biz at enforcing ratings

The video games industry has come under fire many times for offering content not appropriate for children. Even though all games come with a clear rating, an age range and warnings about their content courtesy of the ESRB (Entertainment Software Rating Board), critics are quick to point out any kind of mature content.

Now, according to a recent study, the video games industry might not be the worst offender.

A study was conducted by the US Federal Trade Commission that employed underage Americans who tried to buy either a music CD, a movie or a video game from various stores. All the items had content clearly marked as unsuitable for children: “Explicit Lyrics” on the CDs, an “R” rating for the movies and a “Mature” rating on the video games.

Seventy percent (70%) of the underage shoppers were allowed to buy CDs and 50% of the secret shoppers successfully bought target movies. When it came to the video games, only 20% were able to buy titles with “Mature” content.

The study indicated that on most cases, the video games industry has a tighter control when enforcing the ratings system. Even though both the music and film industries have looser control on ratings, they mostly fly under the radar.

I believe that keeping children away from any material not suited to them is mostly a role for their parents but this shows that the video games industry does a great job lending a hand.

I guess this helps prove that video games are quickly becoming the top entertainment industry.

Read [USA Today] Also read [LA Times]