ABOUT RATINGS AND PARENTAL CONTROLS
The following is an explanation of the age ratings and parental controls available for the games, comics and videos on the PlayStation®Store or on Sony Entertainment Network.
A GUIDE TO VIDEO GAME AGE RATINGS
All of the games available on the PlayStation®Store are labelled with symbols indicating the age for which they are suitable. Age ratings are not a guide to gaming difficulty. Parents should always check ratings before buying or allowing their children to buy or download games from the PlayStation®Store.
By checking age ratings, and using the parental controls (see below), parents and carers can help to ensure that children are not exposed to inappropriate content and behaviour online. Parents and carers should also monitor their child's online activity.
An explanation of the specific age rating symbols used on the PlayStation®Store for games is set out below.
AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND GAMES CLASSIFICATION
The age ratings in Australia and New Zealand are set out below:
Australia
New Zealand
So a "G" game is suitable for everyone, a "PG" game is suitable for children, but parental guidance is recommended, and an "M" game is recommended for mature audiences. These ratings are a guide only. Some games have higher legally restricted ratings, MA15+ in Australia and the Restricted "R" ratings in New Zealand. It is illegal for restricted games to be bought for, or played by, anyone below the age stated in the rating. These ratings have nothing to do with the difficulty or playability of the game.
Any game or video rated "M" or under in Australia does not need to be reclassified in New Zealand. A game or video rated "M" or under can bear the Australian Classification Board rating symbol in New Zealand.
Where a game or video is restricted to 15 years and over, then it must be submitted for classification in New Zealand. In which case the game or video may receive a R13, R15, R16, R18 rating and must bear the New Zealand OFLC rating symbol.
In addition to the rating, the PlayStation®Store will also display descriptions of the type of content appearing in each game, such as "MILD COURSE LANGUAGE" or "MILD VIOLENCE". The rating of the game reflects the intensity of this content. Depending on the game, there may be a number of such descriptions.
Many games are suitable for all ages, but parents and carers should always check the rating first to see if it is suitable for the child concerned. To understand what to expect from a game, both the age rating and the content descriptions should be checked.
For further information, visit www.classification.gov.au/ (for Australia) or www.censorship.govt.nz (for New Zealand).
PARENTAL CONTROLS FOR GAMES AND NON-GAME APPLICATIONS
PlayStation® systems offer a set of parental controls to enable you to restrict access to products with a certain age rating. You can set the parental control level on each of these systems to prevent users of your system from playing or viewing a product with an age rating that is higher than the level set on the system. As explained above, games available on the PlayStation®Store are classified according to the Australian Classification Board and New Zealand OFLC rating systems. Applications available on the PlayStation® Store are classified according to the Non-game Application rating system (Using the parental controls will allow you to prevent children from playing or viewing content which has an age rating which is higher than the child’s age, ensuring that children do not see content that their parents or carers consider inappropriate. The relationship between the relevant rating and the parental control level which can be set on the PlayStation® consoles is as follows:
AGE GROUP Australia
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 9
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 7
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 3
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 1
AGE GROUP New Zealand
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 9
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 8
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 7 
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 3 
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 1 
NON GAME APPLICATIONS
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 9 
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 7 
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 5 
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 3 
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 2 
For more information, please refer to the PSP™ or PS3™ Instruction Manual.
In addition, when you set up a sub account for a child on the PlayStation®Network, you will be asked to confirm their date of birth. Sub accounts will not be able to purchase content on the PlayStation®Store which is rated above their registered age. However, once content has been downloaded from the PlayStation®Store to the PSP™ or PS3™, children may be able to access the content if the parental control level on the PSP™ or PS3™ is not set. Please see the PlayStation®Network Terms of Service and User Agreement for more information.
A GUIDE TO AGE RATINGS FOR COMICS
All of the comics available on the PlayStation®Store are labelled with symbols indicating the age for which they are suitable. These are provided by the publisher of the comics and not by the PlayStation®Store. The ratings are purely advisory. Parents should always check ratings before buying or allowing their children to buy or download comics from the PlayStation®Store.
By checking age ratings, and using the parental controls (see below), parents and carers can help to ensure that children are not exposed to inappropriate content online. Parents and carers should also monitor their child's online activity.
The age ratings for the comics available on the PlayStation®Store are set out below:
So a comic with a 12+ rating means the publisher believes the comic has content which is suitable only for those of 12 years and over, and a comic with an 18+ rating is considered suitable for adults only. The rating reflects the existence of certain content, or the intensity of such content, such as nudity or graphic sexual images, which may not be suitable for a certain age group.
In addition to the age rating, the written description of many comics will indicate the type of content appearing in each comic which may concern parents or carers. The age rating of the comic reflects the intensity of this content. The descriptors are: VIOLENCE, BAD LANGUAGE, FEAR, SEXUAL CONTENT, DRUGS AND DISCRIMINATION. Depending on the comic, there may be a number of such descriptors.
Many comics are suitable for all ages, but parents and carers should always check the rating first to see if it is suitable for the child concerned. To understand what to expect from a comic, both the age rating and descriptors should be checked.
PARENTAL CONTROLS FOR COMICS
The PSP™ (PlayStation®Portable) and the PlayStation®3 systems offer a set of parental controls to enable you to restrict access to products with a certain age rating. You can set the parental control level on each of these systems to prevent users of your system from playing or viewing a product with an age rating that is higher than the level set on the system. As explained above, comics available on the PlayStation®Store are classified according to a number of age ratings. Using the parental controls will allow you to prevent children from playing or viewing content which has an age rating which is higher than the child's age, ensuring that children do not see content that their parents or carers consider inappropriate. The relationship between the relevant rating and the parental control level which can be set on the PSP™ or PS3™ system is as follows:
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 9
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 8
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 6
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 5
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 4
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 2
For more information, please refer to the PSP™ or PS3™ Instruction Manual.
In addition, when you set up a sub account for a child on the PlayStation®Network, you will be asked to confirm their date of birth. Sub accounts will not be able to purchase content on the PlayStation®Store which is rated above their registered age. However, once content has been downloaded from the PlayStation®Store to the PSP™ or PS3™, children may be able to access the content if the parental control level on the PSP™ or PS3™ is not set. Please see the PlayStation®Network Terms of Service and User Agreement for more information.
A GUIDE TO AGE RATINGS FOR VIDEOS
The majority of the videos available on the PlayStation®Store or on Sony Entertainment Network are labeled with symbols indicating the age for which they are suitable. Parents should always check ratings before buying or allowing their children to buy or transmit videos from the PlayStation®Store or Sony Entertainment Network.
By checking age ratings, and using the parental controls (see below), parents and carers can help to ensure that children are not exposed to inappropriate content and behaviour online. Parents and carers should also monitor their child's online activity.
An explanation of the specific age rating symbols used in the PlayStation®Store or on Sony Entertainment Network for videos is set out below. The rating of the video reflects the existence of certain content, or the intensity of such content, such as nudity or graphic sexual images, which may not be suitable for a certain age group.
Many of the videos are suitable for all ages, but parents and carers should always check the rating first to see if it is suitable for the child concerned.
In the event that a video is not rated, then it is only available for PlayStation®Network or Sony Entertainment Network account holders registered with a minimum age. In most cases, the minimum age is 18 years.
A New Zealand OFLC or Australian Classification Board age rating will appear next to rated videos supplied on the PlayStation®Store or Sony Entertainment Network to a user in Australia or New Zealand. The ratings are set out below, along with an explanation of their meaning:
Australia
New Zealand
For further information, visit www.classification.gov.au (for Australia) or www.censorship.govt.nz (for New Zealand).
PARENTAL CONTROLS FOR VIDEO
The PSP™ (PlayStation®Portable) and the PlayStation®3 systems offer a set of parental controls to enable you to restrict access to products with a certain age rating. You can set the parental control level on each of these systems to prevent users of your system from playing or viewing a product with an age rating that is higher than the level set on the system. As explained above, videos available on the PlayStation®Store or Sony Entertainment Network may be classified according to various rating systems. Using the parental controls will allow you to prevent children from playing or viewing content which has an age rating which is higher than the child's age, ensuring that children do not see content that their parents or carers consider inappropriate. The relationship between the relevant rating and the parental control level which can be set on the PSP™ or PS3™ system is as follows:
AGE GROUP Australia
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 10
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 9
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 7
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 3
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 1
AGE GROUP New Zealand
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 10
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 8
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 7
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 6
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 3
PARENTAL CONTROL LEVEL 1
For more information, please refer to the PSP™ or PS3™ Instruction Manual.
In addition, when you set up a sub account for a child on the PlayStation®Network, you will be asked to confirm their date of birth. Sub accounts will not be able to purchase content on the PlayStation®Store or Sony Entertainment Network which is rated above their registered age. However, once content has been downloaded from the PlayStation®Store to the PSP™ or PS3™, children may be able to access the content if the parental control level on the PSP™ or PS3™ is not set. Please see the PlayStation®Network or Terms of Service and User Agreement for more information.
On Sony Entertainment Network, all users are permitted to browse the service before registering (though only content suitable for all ages is accessible to non-registered users). When you register on Sony Entertainment Network, you will be asked to confirm your date of birth. Only registered users are able to purchase videos. As explained above, videos available on Sony Entertainment Network may be classified according to various rating systems. You will only be able to play or view videos which have an age rating higher that the age you submitted when registering.
Where you use a service on other Sony devices besides the PSP™ (PlayStation®Portable) and the PlayStation®3, there may also be parental controls available on those other devices which allow you to restrict access to videos with a certain age rating. For more information, please refer to the instruction manual of your Sony device.