(Kuala Lumpur, 3rd) The Malaysian government believes that some content on the online gaming platform Roblox may have a negative impact on young people, and is therefore studying whether to ban this platform.
Women, Family and Community Development Minister Nancy Shukri told the media on Saturday (November 1) that the Australian government plans to ban Roblox starting in December. Malaysia will then study the implementation in Australia before considering whether to refer to or emulate this approach.
She said: “We are closely monitoring how Australia implements these regulations. These regulations are still in the planning stage and have not yet been enforced. The Malaysian government will assess whether such measures are in line with our own social environment and cultural norms.”
Roblox is an open online gaming platform where players can freely create and participate in various games, including educational, virtual management, and violent shooting content. Some content on the platform is believed to have potential negative impacts on underage players.
In March 2021, Roblox was listed on the New York Stock Exchange and currently has a market value of approximately USD 78.84 billion (about RM 333 billion).
Nancy Shukri said that the details of government regulation of certain gaming platforms are still under discussion. The prevailing view at present is to take action against relevant platforms or game providers, and to implement strict age restrictions.
She added that authorities are also studying whether to allow children to own and use only basic mobile phones, not smartphones.
Last week, in Malaysia, a 9-year-old boy stabbed his younger brother after the latter accidentally reset the points on Roblox on his phone to zero. The incident shocked society and drew government attention to Roblox’s impact on children and youth.
Johor State Police Chief Rahman held a press conference on this case last Wednesday (October 29), stating that a 9-year-old boy in Batu Pahat had been addicted to Roblox for a long time and had spent a large amount of time accumulating over 1 million points. However, when his 6-year-old brother used his phone, he allegedly damaged the phone by accident, causing all the points to reset to zero, which infuriated the older boy.
According to Roblox’s official exchange rate, about 285 points can be redeemed for one US dollar, and 1 million points can be exchanged for about USD 3,508.
Rahman said that, according to police investigations, the boy claimed that at the time of the incident, ‘a voice told him to hurt his family’, so he took a knife at home and stabbed his younger brother’s neck and multiple parts of his body. The victim was later sent to Batu Pahat Hospital for treatment and is currently in stable condition.
The police have arrested the parents of the boys and temporarily handed the 9-year-old to the Social Welfare Department for care. According to Malaysian law, children under the age of 10 do not bear criminal responsibility, thus police cannot arrest the 9-year-old as a criminal suspect.
Women, Family and Community Development Minister Nancy Shukri told the media on Saturday (November 1) that the Australian government plans to ban Roblox starting in December. Malaysia will then study the implementation in Australia before considering whether to refer to or emulate this approach.
She said: “We are closely monitoring how Australia implements these regulations. These regulations are still in the planning stage and have not yet been enforced. The Malaysian government will assess whether such measures are in line with our own social environment and cultural norms.”
Roblox is an open online gaming platform where players can freely create and participate in various games, including educational, virtual management, and violent shooting content. Some content on the platform is believed to have potential negative impacts on underage players.
In March 2021, Roblox was listed on the New York Stock Exchange and currently has a market value of approximately USD 78.84 billion (about RM 333 billion).
Nancy Shukri said that the details of government regulation of certain gaming platforms are still under discussion. The prevailing view at present is to take action against relevant platforms or game providers, and to implement strict age restrictions.
She added that authorities are also studying whether to allow children to own and use only basic mobile phones, not smartphones.
Last week, in Malaysia, a 9-year-old boy stabbed his younger brother after the latter accidentally reset the points on Roblox on his phone to zero. The incident shocked society and drew government attention to Roblox’s impact on children and youth.
Johor State Police Chief Rahman held a press conference on this case last Wednesday (October 29), stating that a 9-year-old boy in Batu Pahat had been addicted to Roblox for a long time and had spent a large amount of time accumulating over 1 million points. However, when his 6-year-old brother used his phone, he allegedly damaged the phone by accident, causing all the points to reset to zero, which infuriated the older boy.
According to Roblox’s official exchange rate, about 285 points can be redeemed for one US dollar, and 1 million points can be exchanged for about USD 3,508.
Rahman said that, according to police investigations, the boy claimed that at the time of the incident, ‘a voice told him to hurt his family’, so he took a knife at home and stabbed his younger brother’s neck and multiple parts of his body. The victim was later sent to Batu Pahat Hospital for treatment and is currently in stable condition.
The police have arrested the parents of the boys and temporarily handed the 9-year-old to the Social Welfare Department for care. According to Malaysian law, children under the age of 10 do not bear criminal responsibility, thus police cannot arrest the 9-year-old as a criminal suspect.