Chinese technology stocks are under pressure as authorities in Beijing say they are considering placing limits on the amount of time people under the age of 18 can spend on their smartphones.
China’s cyberspace regulator says it has recommended placing limits on smartphone usage for children and youth to safeguard their mental health and emotional well-being.
Specifically, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) is recommending a new law that would see children limited to using their phones for a maximum of two hours a day.
The new law being proposed would also see children banned from accessing the internet on any mobile devices between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. each day.
Children in China, the world’s second-largest economy, are already limited in how many hours a day they can play video games.
Currently, children under age 18 are banned from playing online video games between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. They are also restricted to 90 minutes of video games on weekdays and three hours on weekends and holidays.
The new law pertaining to smartphones would require technology companies in China, including phone makers and app developers, to create a “minor mode” function that will set and enforce the usage limits for people under age 18.
The new law is also stricter on younger children, proposing to limit the time people under the age of eight can spend on a smartphone to just eight minutes per day.
The proposed law is currently open to public feedback and under consideration by China’s government in Beijing.
Shares of Chinese technology companies fell sharply on news of the proposed law, with the stock of tech giant Alibaba (BABA) declining more than 3% in Hong Kong trading.
