The Department of Culture, Media and Sport has chosen to adopt PEGI (Pan European Game Information) as the sole age ratings system for videogames in the UK.
The government made the announcement today as part of its newly published Digital Britain report.
As it currently stands, the UK employs a two-tier system for rating games, split between PEGI and the BBFC. In March 2008 the government-commissioned Byron Review recommended that the British Board of Film Classification be charged with rating all games from 12+ upwards, with equivalent PEGI ratings appearing on the back of retail boxes.
Ultimately the Department of Culture, Media and Sport chose not to follow the recommendations of the review, pleasing Simon Little, managing director of the Interactive Software Federation of Europe, which devised PEGI.
“This decision by the British government to adopt PEGI as the single ratings system for videogames in the UK will give British children the same protection whether they are playing at home or online, as children in 28 countries across Europe,” he said.
Mike Rawlinson.director general of ELSPA, the trade body which represents UK games publishers, added: "The Government has made absolutely the right decision for child safety. By choosing PEGI as the single classification system in the UK, British children will now get the best possible protection when playing videogames either on a console or on the internet. Parents can be assured that they will have access to clear, uniform ratings on games and an accurate understanding of game content.”
Under the new rulings the Video Standards Council will enforce PEGI ratings in the UK, and will be given the power to ban games should elements of a given title not meet PEGI's regulations.
"VSC will exercise this new power independently of the PEGI system, providing a 'fail-safe' for the UK - protecting children through PEGI and addressing UK-specific sensibilities by refusing classification of any game which falls foul of the Video Recordings Act,” said Baroness Shephard, president of the VSC.
“We will work closely with the government, the Video Standards Council and the BBFC to ensure a smooth and rapid transition to this new ratings system,” added Rawlinson.