For a short while, SNDA's stock took a baby step ahead while the NetEase (NTES) struggled. It didn't matter. Last week, the Chinese government put the hammer down on online gaming "addicts", enforcing an I.D. log-in requirement that limits gamers to 3 hours of play.
Both SNDA and NTES have sunk a bit since then. Shanda closed today down 3% to $31.09. NetEase finished 1% down to $17.66. The two companies are each valued at $2.2 billion.
Interestingly enough, The9 Limited (NCTY) continues to rise. The makers of World of Warcraft saw its stock rise more than 1% to $51.60 today. How does this happen? According to the International Herald Tribune, World of Warcraft appeals more to adult gamers than teens, and the government had its focus on curtailing the online play of teens. 
I suppose an adult in China who plays 8 hours a day isn't as worrysome as a zombied-out teen. I've always thought that gaming can be addictive, but the alternatives for teens are a mixed bag. On the plus side, there are part-time jobs, i.e. make some spending money. There are creative projects that can be done today, like music production and digital video, that were unaccessible to the average teen 10, 20 years ago. But the teen who has no incentive to be creative and wants only to play online is not exactly worse off. It's easy to get in trouble in real life for a teen who has time and idle hands. Mixed bag. Whatever the case, it'll be interesting to see how Shanda and NetEase respond to the new law.
No comments:
Post a Comment