Tencent Holdings Ltd. dived as much as 11% Tuesday after an offshoot of China’s official news agency decried the “spiritual opium” and “electronic drugs” of games, prompting the country’s largest corporation to declare the possibility of banning kids under the age of 12 from playing altogether.
The twin developments stoked fears Beijing will next set its sights on online entertainment after reining in the e-commerce, ride-hailing and online education industries. Tencent joined rivals NetEase Inc. and XD Inc. in a steep selloff after an outlet run by the Xinhua News Agency published a blistering critique of their industry. The Economic Information Daily cited a student as saying some schoolmates played Tencent’s Honor of Kings -- one of its most popular titles -- eight hours a day and called for stricter controls over time spent.
That sent ripples through the world’s largest mobile gaming arena. Th
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