The Supreme People’s Court (SPC) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) promulgated its Guiding Opinion on Several Issues Concerning the Lawful and Proper Handling of Civil Cases Involving the Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia (COVID-19) Epidemic No. 2 (hereinafter, the ‘Guiding Opinion’) on 15 May 2020. Paragraph 9 of the Guiding Opinion declares that: ‘If a person with “limited capacity for civil conduct,” without the consent of their guardian, engages with paid online video games [e.g., purchases a video game software or makes in-game purchases through microtransactions], or “donates” to content creators or makes other similar payments on livestreaming platforms, to such a sum which is “incompatible with their age and intellectual abilities,” the courts shall support claims from their guardians demanding refund from the internet service providers [e.g., the game company or the livestreaming platform] for such payments.’
People's Republic of China Legal Update: The Notice on Further Strictly Regulating and Effectively Preventing Online Video Gaming Addiction in Minors (Published August 30, 2021, Effective September 1, 2021)
