U.S. court rules violent video game ban unconstitutional

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday that a ban on the sale or rental of violent video games to children is unconstitutional.

The court ruled 7-2 to reject California’s ban on the sale or rental of ultraviolent video games to anyone under 18.

Retailers found in violation of the act would have faced fines up to $1,000.

Federal judges in Sacramento said the law violated minors’ U.S. constitutional right to free speech.

"No doubt a state possesses legitimate power to protect children from harm," said Justice Antonin Scalia. "But that does not include a free-floating power to restrict the ideas to which children may be exposed."

Scalia, who wrote the majority opinion, said there is no tradition in the U.S. of restricting kids’ access to depictions of violence in other popular forms of entertainment, including books, films and time-honoured fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella and Snow White.

The victory for video game makers and sellers upholds the industry’s position that an existing voluntary rating system for games is sufficient enough for parents to decide if the video or computer game is appropriate for their children.

More than 46 million American households have at least one video game system.

The U.S. gaming entertainment industry brought in an estimated $18 billion in 2010.

—

With files from The Associated Press