South Korea's Game Rating and Administration Committee said on Feb. 2 it carried out an organisational overhaul to 추진 its core projects this year.

The revamp was designed to implement this year's priority tasks, including relief for damage linked to probability-based items, efforts to curb online illegal activities and an expansion of outsourcing rating classification authority to the private sector. The focus is on strengthening user protection and post-management functions.

The committee created a User Protection Headquarters dedicated to supporting users harmed by probability-based items. It consists of a Damage Consultation Team in charge of counselling and intake, a Damage Investigation Team that supports investigations and relief, and a Damage Support Team responsible for legal support and prevention education. It plans to build a one-stop system covering consultation, relief and follow-up support.

It also reinforced its post-management organisation to respond to illegal activities. It expanded and reorganised the Investigation Management Team into a Field Response Team specialised for on-site work and an Investigation Support Team aimed at rapid blocking. It added domestic agent designation management work to the Online Response Team. Based on this, the committee plans to strengthen crackdowns on illegal private servers and illegal gambling PC bangs and to prepare institutional improvement measures focused on rapid blocking.

It will scale back its direct rating classification function. Following the completion of the first phase of outsourcing last year, it reorganised the existing Rating Support Headquarters into a Rating Support Centre. The centre will prepare for a second phase of outsourcing for mobile games and will handle ratings for arcade and gambling imitation games. It will focus on supporting the private self-rating system to take stable root.

It also reorganised the Policy Research Institute into a Policy and Legal Affairs Centre, integrating research and legal functions. The education organisation was changed to the Education Information Centre to promote activation of the education portal.

GRAC Chairman Seo Tae-geon (서태건) said, "With this organisational overhaul, the committee will become a user protection and post-management organisation in both name and reality." He added, "We will communicate and listen to voices so that change can be felt in the field."