CA bad for vid games

** Action required before April 13th **

I am writing to alert you to legislation (AB 1792 and AB 1793) that would

harm the video game industry in the state of California and have potential

negative repercussions across the entire industry. Your help is needed to

stop this legislation, which will be considered in General Assembly very

shortly.

These bills treat video games differently from other forms of media. AB

1792 prohibits the sale or rental of video games to minors that contain

violent material by reclassifying games as "harmful substances" such as

alcohol and tobaco. AB 1793 mandates unwieldy segregation rules for

retailers to display games based on ratings issued by the Entertainment

Software Rating Board (ESRB). These bills are a misdirected attempt at

placing the government, instead of parents, in charge of what games they

buy for their families.



Full details on AB 1792 and AB 1793 can be found at the California State

Legislature website:

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=ab_1792&sess=CUR&house=B&author=yee

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=ab_1793&sess=CUR&house=B&author=yee



These bills would frustrate new major efforts undertaken by our industry

and retailers to voluntarily increase awareness of the game rating system

and prevent the sale of M (Mature) rated games to kids under 17. And, the

bills do not reflect the fact that over 80% of all game are purchased by

adults, and that the average age of game players is 25+ years.

Furthermore, some retailers have stated that they would feel they do not

have any other choice but to stop carrying all video games rated M or AO

rather than risk non-compliance with government regulations before they

have even had a chance to fully implement the industry's voluntary program.

The IGDA firmly believes that games are a medium of expression that should

receive the same level of respect, and protection, as other forms of art

and entertainment. These bill are one more step on the slippery slope of

government regulation, oversight and control over our creative endeavors.

Here is how you can help stop this legislation. The Arts and Entertainment

Committee will be considering these bills on April 13th and the Public

Safety Committee will be considering them soon after. If you reside in the

district of one of these Committees' members, it is imperative that you

email or fax him/her as soon as possible to urge a vote against this

legislation.

A draft letter that you can modify and send is available at the IGDA site:

http://www.igda.org/censorship/CA_letter.php

As well as a list of the members of both Committees:

http://www.igda.org/censorship/CA_reps.php

If you do not know who your reps are, you can cross check online first:

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/yourleg.html



Please grab the letter, tweak it as you see fit and send it off to the

appropriate Committee member (ie, the one from the district you are in).

Please copy me on your email or letter.



These bills are unnecessary and unworkable and would unfairly single out

video games. Lawmakers should refrain from damaging an industry that is so

critical to the Californian economy and discourage our positive voluntary

efforts to address the issues that policymakers have been demanding. Thanks

for your consideration of this request. If you have any questions, please

let me know.



Some additional background info links:

Reference: Anti-Censorship Key Points

http://www.igda.org/censorship/points.php

Letter: IGDA opposition letter to Leland Yee

http://www.igda.org/censorship/IGDA_letter-to-Yee_200402.pdf

Article: Regulation Is Everyone's Business

http://www.igda.org/articles/dellarocca_regulation.php

Article: Violent video games under fire in Assembly

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/04/05/BAGSB60LTD1.DTL

Article: Video games spark debate, legislation

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/7832112.htm

Interview: Leland Y. Yee Interview at HomeLan

http://www.homelanfed.com/index.php?id=19058