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Shaping the future of safe listening in video gameplay and esports: web meeting [1]

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Date: 2024-06-26  

Introduction

Video gaming and esports have surged in global popularity, captivating more than 3 billion enthusiasts worldwide on video gameplay devices. With an estimated 600 million game players on console platforms and 1.1 billion on personal computers and an industry revenue expected to exceed 270 billion in 2024, video gameplay activities have solidified their status as premier forms of entertainment and spawned new streams of competitive gameplay, known as esports. Esports involves competitive and organized video gaming where individuals or teams face each other under regulated and structured conditions, with competitive events regularly being organized both online and even in arena sized venues.

However, the increasing prevalence of prolonged and potentially loud audio exposure in these activities has raised serious health concerns, particularly related to hearing damage and sound-induced hearing loss. A recent systematic scoping review systematic scoping review suggests that gaming may be a common source of unsafe listening, which could place many individuals worldwide at risk of permanent hearing loss and/or tinnitus based on the current available research.

In response, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the World Health Organization (WHO) are developing a technical standard for safe listening in video gameplay and esports. This initiative, proposed by WHO and accepted by ITU in July 2023, has involved a series of technical workshops with the goal of developing the world’s first Global standard for safe listening in video gameplay.

As a result of several workshops, the draft standard is now in a mature format, and WHO would like to share its status with all stakeholders to spread awareness about its existence and provide an opportunity for discussion.

Online meeting information

The WHO Ear and hearing care programme is hosting an online meeting on 26 June 2024 at 14:00 (Central European Summer Time) and will be open to the public.

It has a purpose to:

Provide a summary of the background context leading to the development of the Global standard for safe listening in video gameplay and esports. Outline the main features of the Global standard for safe listening in video gameplay and esports, including a rationale for their inclusion. Provide an explanation of how the Global standard for safe listening in video gameplay and esports is intended to complement the other existing standards for safe listening

You should register to attend the web meeting here.

Closed captioning in all 6 UN languages will be available during the web meeting.

For more information, please contact WHO via email: mls@who.int

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[1] Url: https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2024/06/26/default-calendar/shaping-the-future-of-safe-listening-in-video-gameplay-and-esports--web-meeting

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