S Korea may stop Google's Android market operation due to illegal game contents

SEOUL, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The South Korean government may ban Google Inc. from operating its Android market place in the country for making game contents available without government approval, the country's game regulating body said Thursday.

South Korea's Games Ratings Board said it has sent an official proposal for corrective measures to Google Korea, warning the U.S.- based company may face termination of its Android market service here if it continues to defy local regulations.

"We have confirmed a number of game contents available to South Korean users on Google's Android market that has not been rated by the country's board," the Games Ratings Board said in the letter.

"If Google fails to make any corrective measures, we may have to completely shut down the Android market place in South Korea," it added.

Roughly 4,400 game contents without board ratings have been found to be available on the Android market in South Korea, according to the board, which requires all video games to be rated by the board before its release.

Google Korea has not released any official comment with regards to the letter as of Thursday afternoon.

The Android market is an online marketplace that provides contents and applications that could be downloaded to mobile phones with Google's Android operating system.

Motorola Inc. and LG Electronics Inc. have released smartphone models with the Android system in South Korea in the last two months, with more releases scheduled in coming months.