China's Internet watchdogs have said they are still considering penalties for on-line games companies that failed to install anti-addiction systems by the deadline on Monday.

Eight government departments jointly announced on April 9 that all online game companies must install the anti-addiction system and formally operate the system by July 16.

Meanwhile, on-line gamers are required to register with their real names and identity card numbers to show if they are under or over the age of 18, according to the circular.

By July 15, games like ZT games and World of Warcraft (WoW) had installed their anti-addiction and real-name systems.

Zhao Yurun, public relations director of the The9, which runs WoW in China, said, "We have installed the anti-addiction system on all games, including WoW, the Soul Ultimate Nation and the Fantastic Melody Online."

An official with General Administration of Press and Publications said officials were still discussing penalties for firms that had failed to instal the anti-addiction system, a GAPP official said.

The anti-addiction system restricts a minor's playing time by canceling half their earned credits if they remain on-line for more than three hours a day. If the child plays for more than five hours a day, all their gaming credits will be lost.

Statistics show China has 31.23 million on-line games players, of whom about 10 percent are minors and 65.3 percent play for less than three hours a day.

(Xinhua News Agency July 17, 2007)