SingTel fined $40,000 for selling sex-themed mobile phone games
SingTel has been slapped with a $40,000 fine for peddling sex-themed mobile phone games on their website, a first for an Internet Service Provider (ISP) under Singapore's Internet Code of Practice.
The Media Development Authority (MDA) made the decision to implement the penalty three months after a member of the public spotted the games on sale on SingTel's website.
She then filed a complaint with the authorities and posted screenshots of the games being sold on citizen journalism website STOMP. The game titles were removed from the site hours later, however, when the telco was informed about the posting.
The MDA said in a statement later that it had found a total of 11 games with images of nude or scantily-clad women offered on the SingTel Ideas site, reported The Straits Times. Two of these were found to feature themes of rape and bestiality.
These, said the MDA, were "offensive to good taste and decency and constitute materials prohibited under the Internet Code of Practice," consequently imposing a fine that was close to the maximum possible $50,000 for breaching the code.
Under the Internet Code of Practice in Singapore, any depiction of nudity or genitalia, sexual violence, homosexuality, incest and paedophilia is not allowed.
M1 and StarHub, the nation's two other providers, also sold similar games but escaped the fine after the MDA considered the games sold to be acceptably within guidelines. They have since discontinued sales of the games, however, following an MDA notice to all three telcos to do so.
None of the providers would say how long they had been selling the games, or how many times they had been purchased and downloaded.
Commenting on the fine, a SingTel spokesperson said the telco has reviewed and tightened its content publishing and posting procedures.
"We have also worked closely with our content partners to ensure there are no further breaches," he said. "We wish to assure our customers that we take our role as a family friendly ISP seriously and apologise for causing any concern."
