Rationale for Tax Benefits for Games and Inclusion in Cultural Expenses Tax Deduction
Jo Seung-lae: “Reflecting Policy Suggestions from the Game Special Committee to Ease Digital Game Regulations”,
” (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Joo-hwan – The ruling party is pushing to abolish the Game Rating and Administration Committee and establish a ‘Game Promotion Agency,’ which is the essence of the complete revision of the current Game Industry Act.”,
‘ Jo Seung-lae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, announced on the 24th that he has initiated a complete revision bill of the Game Industry Act that contains these proposals.’,
‘ The revision divides games into digital games and specific location-based games (arcade games), and relaxes regulations limited to digital games.’,
‘ Notably, it abolished the game time selection system applied to online games and the obligation for personal identification and parental consent for games rated for all ages to increase accessibility and convenience to games.’,
‘ Representative Jo plans to establish the Game Promotion Agency for specialized support in the gaming sector, abolish the current game committee, and incorporate it as a subsidiary body under the agency, only handling classification tasks and monitoring for gambling concerns in arcade games.’,
‘ Additionally, the bill establishes support grounds for small gaming businesses and tax support regulations to promote the gaming industry, creating new regulations for industry growth.’,
” Vague expressions prohibiting the production or import of games depicting ‘anti-national actions’ or ‘damage to family ethics’ have been clarified to mean ‘those that primarily contain content punishable under specific laws such as criminal law,’ thus enhancing the predictability of regulations.”,
” Representative Jo has also changed the title of the law from ‘Act on the Promotion of the Game Industry’ to ‘Act on the Promotion of Game Culture and Industry’ and proposed an amendment to the ‘Restrictions of Special Taxation Act’ to include game fees in cultural expenses tax deduction to emphasize that games are part of cultural arts.”,
” Moreover, to support eSports, he proposed an amendment to the eSports Act mandating the formation of the ‘eSports Promotion Advisory Committee’ and including content related to international cooperation and exchanges such as supporting the inclusion of domestic eSports events in international competitions.”,
‘ Representative Jo stated that he has reflected many of the policy suggestions released in May by the Democratic Party’s Game Special Committee, which was launched during the last presidential election, into this legislation.’,
‘ Jo Seung-lae stated, “As the global status of K-content continues to rise, a proactive legal and institutional framework is necessary for nurturing the game industry, which accounts for 50% of cultural content exports. I hope this comprehensive revision will serve as an opportunity for the game industry, currently in stagnation, to make a leap forward.”‘,
‘ jujuk@yna.co.kr’,