Chinese online game developer and operator Changyou.com Limited and its majority shareholder Sohu.com Inc. have jointly announced that the two parties have entered into a definitive agreement under which Changyou.com will acquire 17173.com, a leading gaming information portal in China, from Sohu.com for USD162.5 million.

To ensure an efficient management of the online games industry and make sure prominent problems of the industry are solved, China's Ministry of Culture has issued a provisional measure on the management of online games.

Taking advantage of the weeklong national holiday in China, online game development company Giant Interactive Group Inc. has tried to sneak through a press release that should cause alarm for investors.

China's Ministry of Culture and Ministry of Commerce have jointly focused on the management of virtual money for online games with a new regulation which states that virtual currency should not be used in trade of real goods and services.

The People's Bank of China has published a notice that requires all non-financial organizations engaged in payment and settlement businesses in China, including Internet platforms such as Alipay, to fully register under the new guidelines before July 31, 2009.

According to the latest report on Chinese online game users published by the China Internet Network Information Center, the number of online game players in China has reached 55.5 million, but many are considered low-end players.

Beijing Local Taxation Bureau has published tax collection rules for virtual and online currency transactions, which state that according to whether the individuals can provide income proof or not, they should pay tax at 20% of their profits or 3% of the total value of the transactions.