China has officially sanctioned the sale of video game consoles after a 14-year ban.
China initially banned video game consoles in 2000 to combat what the government considered a "corrupting influence" on the nation's children. Bloomberg is reporting that after a brief trial period of console sales within Shanghai's free-trade zone, China has finally repealed the ban on game consoles and will soon allow their sale nationwide.
Microsoft was the first foreign company to begin selling a video game console in China back in September when the company introduced the Xbox One to Shanghai. "We know there are millions of gamers there and lots of pent-up demand," Phil Spencer, the head of Microsoft's Xbox division, said at the time.
Analysts at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP estimate that console makers could be looking at a $10 billion video game industry in China, opening the doors to an completely new market for Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo.
Some companies are already taking advantage of the news, and Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba recently made a $10 million investment into the makers of OUYA, an inexpensive console that is powered by Android tech.
While the sale of video game consoles is now legal in China, game developers will still face tough censorship laws that make it very difficult to release games in the country. When the Xbox One first began selling in Shanghai, it shipped with only 10 different titles available for the system.
Sony had also made plans to sell the PlayStation 4 in the free-trade zone in Shanghai, but requests for changes made by the Chinese authorities forced the Sony to postpone its original January 11 release date.
With China's hardline stance on violence and other objectionable material in games, it is unclear where the future of foreign game development stands in the country.
