While a ban that outlaws titillating Internet-based ads for online games went into effect in China on August 1, the edict had no impact on sexy promotions at a recently completed Chinese game expo.
The China Digital Entertainment Expo & Conference, known as ChinaJoy, ran from July 29 through August 1 and is backed by a slew of Chinese government agencies, including the General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP), the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Industrial and Information Technology and the National Copyright Bureau.
The involvement of so many government entities did little to hinder the employment of “columns of Chinese girls in white boots and miniskirts,” at the show, according to a story on Canada.com. The website described some of the action:
Throughout the exhibition hall, the same scene played out again and again -- packs of men of various ages with cameras call out to girls who smile, pout and lean against oversized models of video game characters.
A 21-year old girl named Sheril Ma was working as a booth beauty at ChinaJoy. She thinks regulators will soon target the abundance of sex at such events, stating, “This is growing and maybe in the future when this exhibition attracts more people, the Chinese government will play a part in this if it has too many bad effects on teenagers.” She wondered though, “…if it really works, maybe many other cultures will adopt this way of selling.”
Jay Jiang, a Marketing Planning Director for Shanda Games, was quoted as saying, “I've been to shows in Japan and Korea before, they don't have as many show girls.”
One woman who attended the show with her two kids wasn’t worried about the impact the models could have on her children, saying they were too young to understand. She added, “So long as their father's not here, it's fine.”
Image taken at ChinaJoy 2009 from MMOSite.com
Comments
Re: Government Backed Chinese Game Con Boasts "Columns of ...
Finally something me and China can agree on; Booth girls makes conventions even better!
http://www.magicinkgaming.com/
Re: Government Backed Chinese Game Con Boasts "Columns of ...
Maybe there is hope, after all.
------------------------------------------------------------ My DeviantArt Page (aka DeviantCensorship): http://www.darkknightstrikes.deviantart.com
Re: Government Backed Chinese Game Con Boasts "Columns of ...
Out of pure curiosity, does anyone find that the presence of attractive women makes the product itself more appealing? At all?
Andrew Eisen
Re: Government Backed Chinese Game Con Boasts "Columns of ...
if a product is crap its still gonna be crap no matter who or what is next to or on it.
Re: Government Backed Chinese Game Con Boasts "Columns of ...
I believe it's more about getting attention. Even if the product is rubbish, at least people are examining it, so there's a chance they'll buy it, as opposed to not noticing it and there being no chance of them buying it.
If I remember my business classes correctly, there's something about ... I can't remember it clearly - something along the lines of how you can't have a woman in a bikini on top of a car to try and sell it, but one at the side of it in a dress is fine, as long as the focus is on the product.
Re: Government Backed Chinese Game Con Boasts "Columns of ...
Generally it has been found to have little to no effect on actual consumers.
Stuff like this is more about posturing between companies, which effects access to suppliers, distribution channels, and employment pools.