20 Years of ELSPA

The age ratings issue has, of course, been one of ELSPA's toughest and most public fights in recent times - a fight which culminated in the organisation's PEGI system being awarded legal status in the UK in June this year.

Prior to that decision being made, Bennett marks the Manhunt debacle as one of the most difficult issues he had to face during his 16 years with the organisation, describing the ensuing media storm as "awful and potentially damaging."

PEGI's subsequent governmental acceptance is a result that all three ELSPA director generals, past and present, agree is one of the organisation's most important achievements over the past 20 years.

The introduction of BBFC ratings on all games to the detriment of PEGI was a potential "doomsday scenario" says Bennett, after all the work ELSPA and its assorted partners across Europe had invested into the PEGI system.

"Getting the government to accept the self regulatory system PEGI as the method for classifying games was a huge win, both politically and economically, for the industry," says Rawlinson. "It was very difficult. The DCMS Committee that reviewed Byron's work came out suggesting the BBFC was the right solution... there were two strikes against us. In the end we were able to win the day, but it was tough."

Other ELSPA success stories over the years are listed by the three director generals: the development of the ISFE - the Europe-wide trade organisation; its involvement with ECTS; the Safe Hands security scheme (designed in the early days of optical discs when developers had no idea how many game CDs were being produced and, most importantly, how many were going out the back door); and its formation of Chart-Track data.

The latter in particular was hugely significant for the industry, says Jackson.

"It was important for making us seen as a proper industry. In the nineties the UK seemed to have the best data in Europe, and that helped the UK to develop faster than any other European country."

It's self regulation that keeps cropping up in the conversation though. Notably when current DG Michael Rawlinson discusses the issues he sees the games industry having to overcome in the years to come - which he speculates will revolve around adapting to a number of new business models and practices.

For instance, user-generated content is going to need in place a "robust and appropriate system", he says, which makes clear what users may come into contact with. Dealing with it will be a big challenge for the industry, and tackling it without the need for government-enforced regulations, but while acting responsibly, will be key.

"The lines between a game and social networking and the internet are becoming blurred in many ways," he points out. "Those challenges will require codes of practice and agreed standards that the government will want the industry to take on board and sign up to on a self regulatory basis in the first instance.

"As a backdrop they can always regulate, and that won't be good for the industry. ELSPA's role is, on the one hand, to make sure that self regulation is appropriate and proportionate and actually workable and, facing back the other way, explain to the industry, communicate with it, why it's important that they take these things on board and sign up to them, because it will protect them in the long run."

New businesses bring with them new challenges, continues Rawlinson. And he sees the coming years producing a number of new companies trying out new things. "Through those early stages a lot of issues come into the fore," he says. Issues which should keep ELSPA busy for the foreseeable future.

Indeed Rawlinson can't envisage a time when his organisation's duties will ever be redundant. No matter how much self regulation is introduced, how far piracy prevention technology advances or how online gaming evolves.

"Dialogue will always be needed with government," he points out. "We'll need to be looking out for our members in a business environment - support mechanisms, tax incentives, grants, financing options. There'll be a need to develop skills and relationships with skills providers, universities and colleges, making sure the curriculum works well. There's an ongoing agenda of work to be done, and I'm pretty sure that'll be going for many more years - probably way beyond my retirement."