Should it be illegal to sell M/AO title to minors?

[Peench]

Should it be illegal for retailers to sell Mature or Adults Only titles to Minors? This isn't the first time legislation like this has been proposed. H.R. 5990 was introduced to read, "It shall be unlawful for any person to ship or otherwise distribute in interstate commerce, or to sell or rent, a video game that does not contain a rating label, in a clear and conspicuous location on the outside packaging of the video game, containing an age-based content rating determined by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board."

Prior renditions of laws such as this, including one authored by the same author of this bill, have been struck down as unconstitutional. But apparently that's not stopping another introduction of the same type of law.

According to this article, "The FTC's most recent "undercover shopper" test discovered that 80% of 253 minors were turned down when they tried to purchase M-rated games. Its test the year before found only 58% of children were turned down, and Rep. Matheson claims 42% of unsupervised teens aged 13 to 16 could purchase M-rated video games in 2005." It appears that times are changing and that voluntary carding seems to have helped.

So is this legislation misplaced? Should it be "illegal" to sell Adults Only or Mature games to minors? As far as I know, ESRB ratings are voluntary. Should they be relied upon to penalize retailers?

I guess I sound like a broken record, but in my opinion this legislation is misplaced. Instead of focusing on penalizing, we should be focused on education. Unless this entire proposal is intended solely to raise revenue, why not take the appropriations for processing penalties and use the funds to educate parents/retailers, etc.

What do you think?

[Epyon MX]

The MPAA and the movie ratings aren't law either. And there's no law on which books you can sell to which age.

Are there laws on buying pornography? I think that's the only case of true law enforcement. But pornography is gratuitous and explicit. No games are like that.

So no, not a law. And besides, it seems like the self-regulation is working. The Mature 17 year old enforcement is far better than the R 17 year old enforcement.

[Peench]

Yeah, I didn't think movie ratings were required either, but I am not aware of any laws making it illegal to sell R rated movie tickets to minors either. Of course, I could be wrong on both accounts.

[2Times]

I found this on the ESRB website:
Retailer Support

Although it does not have the legal authority to implement or enforce retailer sales policies with respect to computer and video games, the ESRB works closely with retailers and game centers to: a) provide in-store signage which explains the rating system; b) support their store policies pertaining to the sale or rental of Mature-rated games to minors; and c) help educate and train store associates and employees with regard to the rating system. For more information on the ESRB retail partnership program and the ESRB Retail Council (ERC),

I'm more liberal than most when it comes decisions being made for us by our government, but I think retailers should be required to only sell M/AO games to adults.

Although they don't have legal authority to enforce the ratings, game developers and publishers could make it difficult for retailers who fail to enforce the ratings. At least make it mandatory for the retailers to explain the ratings and inform parents or guardians about the products they are buying for their children.

Games are totally different than movies. Parents understand what movie ratings are and what is depicted in the movies, but unless they are gamers themselves, they have no real idea what the ratings are for.

IMO, Peench is on the right track, education is the way to go; but unless there are consequences for the retailers "non-action", the gaming industry will continue to get a bad rap from parents and politicians who don't understand games or the way they are rated.

The penalties should be from the gaming industry or the ERSB, not the government. Make a long story even longer, not illegal, but something should be done.

I voted yes, but after thinking it through and reading what I wrote, I guess I should have voted no. Can we change our vote?

[Lord Sam]

I can't tell you how many kids we've sent home to drag in their parents to buy mature rated games. Must be at least three (just kidding).

So that's why when Brew pranked called the store ("You bastards sold an M rated game to my son and I'm freakin pissed!") I knew it was false. Where has Brew been BTW?

[TheEman28]

Making it illegal is not the way to go. We have a court system now that is overburdened. Awareness is more the answer. Kinda like cigarettes. It is illegal to sell them, and kids still get them. But people now are more aware that they can kill you and such. (PS, not trying to call out some of my smoking gamer friends) I am not saying video games kill but inform more people about the rating system so they can make an educated choice might make it better in the end.

[D_Litch]

Originally Posted by Lord Sam

Where has Brew been BTW?

He gots a Mustang!

[MadBryan]

Originally Posted by D_Litch

He gots a Mustang!

Is that a nickname for an STD?

[Thornes70]

I dunno, I'm split on this.

While I think it's a bit too much to make it illegal to sell M rated games, I think the AO brand should be more acceptable for more games. It seems to have a stigma associated with pornography, and that's a stigma the gaming industry is trying hard to avoid.

Games that should be AO (imo) would definitely be games like GTA IV, and I could definitely see having a fee tagged on to selling AO titles to minors... It's like traffic court: you go, you pay, you walk away. With the entertainment industry paying for it (obviously passed on to the consumer), would it be that much to ask?

Like I said - I don't know. Hard one to answer.

[A SpecialFriend]

You can't buy any tobacco products without any ID saying your 18 right? You can't see an R rated movie without an ID saying your 18 right? So what's the difference with a video game that says you must be 17+ to purchase? Sorry for your luck, but it's the rules. If you're that desperate to get a game with an M rating, ask you mom!

It's not against the law for me to sell a pre-paid phone to a minor, but it's against the rules set by my company, therefore I don't do it. I could have an angry parent come storming in the door asking why I sold a phone to their 15 year old son, or worse, lose my job. I don't want that mess. It's up to the person selling the games right now to make that decision. Hopefully they make the right one.

[The Milk Man 09]

I think that there should be a fine for retailers who sell them to anyone under 17 but nothing more than that. If a parent thinks that their kid is mature enough to play an m rated game than that is their decision, or if an older sibling or friend buys it for a younger person, than that isnt a big deal either. Its not like any underage kids never saw any R rated movies 20+years ago.

[A SpecialFriend]

Originally Posted by The Milk Man 09

Its not like any underage kids never saw any R rated movies 20+years ago.

You're right, and I may have been a culprit of that myself, but I sure as hell didn't see it in the theaters when I was 13. If my mom didn't think I should see it, I didn't. I believe that is a major problem in today's society. Some parents, not all, just don't care. You can argue that that was the case 20 years ago too, but the fact that a kid can walk into a store and purchase a game like GTA IV and be subject to Murder, Prostitution, Gambling, hell the list goes on and on, is beyond me. If you don't mind that your child plays this kind of stuff then fine, that's your prerogative, but if and when I have children, the last thing I want them to ask me is, "Daddy, what is the difference between an$20, $30, and $70 Service from the lady on the street?"